Star Wars IX: Masters of the Galaxy
by CircadianTurnip
Summary: This story presents possible ending to the third gen Star Wars trilogy (TFA, TLJ, Episode IX). Stories of resistance heroes, followers of the force, and those who decide the future of the unworthy galaxy far far away.
1. long live the Supreme Leader

A First Order cruiser approaches Ahch-To, in search of Luke Skywalker. Ben Solo and General Hux sit in silence on the ship, the tension is overshadowed by the awkwardness. Hux doesn't dare say anything after the failure on Krait.

"I hear your thoughts" Ben whispers. "I'm working on it"

Hux swallows, sounding relieved and on edge. "What do we do?"

"I'm working on it", repeating himself. "I can feel your fear."

Hux looks away feeling vulnerable, he still whines about the injury Ben caused.

"You will live. I'll see to it that you survive, but I need you to work." Ben says with a grain of sympathy.

Hux quickly changes the subject, "will you kill him? When we get there."

Ben looks into Hux's eyes, "He's already gone."

The ship lands and Ben and Hux exit with about ten guards.

"Burn the village," Ben utters as he strolls up to the hill.

"Where are you going?" Hux yells

Ben walks forward, remaining silent. He reaches the ledge at the top of the mountain and strokes the broken stone at his feet. He sees visions of Rey and glares down at his side, He catches the view of his lightsaber. He picks it up and thinks of the moment in the elevator with Rey. He crushes the lightsaber in his hand and lets the parts and the crystal tumble down the cliff. He looks as if he's going to cry, then he hears a voice.

"You didn't hurt the cliff as much as her"

He turns to see Luke, in ghost form. Ben is too stunned to speak.

"You were more balanced."

"Why did you do it?" Ben pondered aloud, "She can't win without you."

"You won't win without her," Luke taunts, "I could feel your strength when you were together. You joined Snoke because you felt alone and now you're running away again."

"It's not that simple", Ben whispers again.

"I know it isn't, but I left and look what happened. You killed my best friend, and I died to give her a chance to make his death worthwhile." Luke explains, "I know you feel her everywhere. It's hard not to notice her. You can either fight her, win or lose, or you can join her."

"Let me make up my mind!" Ben screams

"Fine, but the longer you take the more she'll know how weak you are. You've been very strong, but it won't last forever as long as you continue to be indecisive.

Ben walks away, and Luke disappears. He starts towards the exit when he feels the force pull him towards the mirror that Rey found. He trusts the instinct and falls to the pool. He strolls to the mirror and stares into it. He ponders, then sees Han's face staring back at him. He almost tears up, then in a rage shatters the mirror. Behind the mirror lies a pedestal made of stone, and atop rests a kyber crystal in a pure white form. Upon seeing it he extends his hand and tries to pull it to him. The crystal doesn't move. Ben walks to it and sits in front of it. He closes his eyes and meditates to the crystal. He is met with visions of pain and the past. For a brief moment he recalls Rey, but he sees the future and decides that he can't find peace with her. He opens his eyes and the crystal is bright red and floating in front of him.

"Darkness isn't hate, only Chaos." is whispered in the air by an unseen spirit.

Ben looks around and starts down the mountain.

Hux waits impatiently and nervous, "Did you get what you want, because I've received twenty-three messages from the outer reaches. Our officers don't know what's going on, what do we say."

"I have an idea, call a meeting and spread the word. Snoke and Kylo Ren are dead!"

"Wait, wait! Who will lead?" Hux stammers

"You will, supreme leader" Ben remarks without emotion

"I can't lead!"

"Sure, you can, supreme leader Hux" he shoves him towards the ship.

Before they can reach it, Ben feels the force. He stares at the smoldering temple for a beat. He closes his eyes, extends his arm. From the flames, Luke's charred saber flies through the air. It rests after slamming into Ben's fist, he proceeds without a moment of thought as they blast off the planet.


	2. The Speck in Space

Two months later, The resistance is taking refuge on a distant planet near Mandalore. It is rich with life, consisting of mostly jungles and deep caverns. On the ship, we see Rose in a hospital bed, still comatose. Finn stands at the door concerned and perplexed. Poe puts his hand on his shoulder in a familiar way.

"Still visiting I see, they said she'll be fine," Poe reassures

Finns looks out the window, "It would've worked"

"What would've worked?" Poe asks, "you mean on Krait? That was months ago, you can't cling to stuff like that. Not when we're on the ropes."

"I could've saved us"

"To be fair, we didn't really need saving. We would've still been surrounded and we still would've needed someone to lift the rocks. Our escape was luck at best."

Finn looks at Poe, "but she took it from me."

They stand in silence for a moment. Poe feels Finn's pain.

"I'll admit, you were doing something noble. I don't think I could've done it. She didn't have the right to save you, but I'm glad she did."

Finn smiles and they both walk to the bridge

Someone on the bridge yells: "we're landing in five".

Leia stands alone, in the shadows of crates and boxes. Hopeful but discontent with her position. She looks in the distance and sees something the viewer does not. She looks surprised, then she walks inside the Falcon to a box that seems older than the rest. She opens it and strolls to a statue. The statue is one of Han Solo and other rebellion heroes, she walks to the empty deteriorating statue and places the metal he earned after the destruction of the death star at the base of the statue.

She speaks slowly but with determination, "This will begin to make things right."

Poe strolls to Leia's side. "What now? Do you think we'll find support here?"

Leia sighs, "I don't think so. But I didn't come here for help, I came for a home."

Poe looks at her with a concerned look. "You mean, you're done fighting back?"

"Only for the moment, as long as we exist hope still has a chance. Besides…" Leia looks to the ship, Rey is in the window putting things in her satchel. "...I don't think a fight will be simple enough for the galaxy this time."

"Is that a good thing?" Poe asks, feeling lost.

"Only time will tell."

"Please don't take this wrong way, but I'm tired of only having hope to feed me."

Leia laughs, "don't worry boy. You'll have everything you need here, this is where I spent the majority of my life after the war."

The resistance sets up camp in an old rebellion training base. It is decrepit, but they manage to find many machines and vehicles to last them. Finn opens a freezer and sees a large amount of food, perfectly preserved.

"I could get used to this", Finn yells into the base.

Leia leads Rey through the halls of the base. "Luke only stayed here for about a year." Leia says as she swings a door open revealing a room in shambles. "Maybe a little longer than a year." She begins to dig into one of the cabinets. She pulls out a couple of lightsabers. "These were his, he always kept a spare around. I used this one a few time myself, I never really trained, I usually just used pure instinct as always."

"No thank you, I've been reading these scrolls and a Jedi's relationship with their weapon is pretty important," Rey explains.

"Oh. Well, if you need something just ask."

"Actually, do you have a mechanics garage."

"Sure, it's near the entrance. By the way, are you ok? Chewie said that you took on Ben alone. How is he?"

Rey hesitates, " he's...not going to help us."

Leia sighs. " He's not like his father, he's reserved. He didn't trust people before he had a reason not to, I don't blame him."

"In a weird way, neither do I."

Leia leaves and Rey makes her way to the garage. She digs around in various toolbox's, finding different machine parts. She lays them in front of her with the two pieces of Luke's kyber crystal in the center. She meditates and slowly we see the crystals fly and the parts begin to swirl around them. They arrange themselves in a hilt like shape, but before it can be complete the group of parts collapses. Rey screams in frustration and the parts fly in all directions.

"Woah, that was amazing," Finn says while appearing in the doorway.

"Sorry, I didn't know you were there."

"Still working on it?"

"Without any luck, I don't know what it is. I'm doing everything right," Rey scoffs.

"Maybe these books are just old, did you talk to Luke about it?"

"He is disconnecting himself from me, apparently death is actually quite busy."

"It can't be any worse than what's going on out there," Finn jokes. "What about Leia, can't she teach you something?"

"I know what I have to do, but it takes a lot." Rey says, lost in thought.

"What's that?"

"It's...strange. I need to contact my parents."

"Wait, you can do that?" Finn shouts.

"Yes, calm down." Rey giggles. "I just don't want to talk to them."

"Maybe they know what you're going through."

"Even so, they abandoned me."

"That's true, but Jakku isn't all bad."

Rey looks at him with a surprised face, "you hate Jakku."

"True, but it did have the Millennium Falcon. And you."

Rey smiles, "I'm glad we can rest. I've missed you."

"Same here," Finn says tenderly.

Poe walks in, "Leia needs everyone on the bridge. It's time to get stuff done."

"Finally," Finn and Rey say in unison.


	3. Survival of the Fittest

Leia stands in front of the crowd with Chewie at her side. " I would like to say that our engineering team has found a way to communicate with the outside world from this base, and the First Order is no longer conducting any further expansion in the last two months. As you know Supreme Leader Snoke is dead and Ben Solo," Leia pauses and skips a breath, "my son is presumed dead as well. I don't believe this is true, and in fact, I believe he is in full control of the First Order."

Poe steps forward, "If the First Order isn't taking over anymore systems, how many planets are still independent?"

"Do we have any allies left after the Republic fell? Finn chimes in.

Leia collects herself, "there are over 40 planets that are still out of First Order hands, but most of them already have deals with them for production of weapons and ships."

Poe thinks aloud, "If someone could get there we could convince them for support-"

"We shouldn't have to leave this planet if we can locate this moons Transmitter Station," Leia corrects.

"There's a station on this planet?" Finn said confused." I thought the First Order controlled all of them.

"They control all the new stations, but the Mandalorians constructed a private transmitter for themselves." Leia takes a beat, "When the new Republic formed, Luke and I gave it to an old friend of ours. But, he died and left it to his best commander. If we can convince him to help, then we can send a message to the galaxy."

Rey steps out from the hall, "do you think words will be enough."

Leia sighs, "the First Order is strong and unpopular. A step away from becoming weak. They run this galaxy well at the expense of freedom and independence. Our republic should be a choice, it is not for us to interfere. Our job is to tell the galaxy that they don't need masters anymore."

Rey is satisfied, but concerned about Ben's place in this plan.

"Well said general," Poe compliments, "now give me a job."

Leia sarcastically looks at Poe, "well hot shot, I do need a pilot. Rey, if you think it will help, Luke found an old temple on this planet. I can have someone get you the coordinates."

"Thank you, I think I will."

Finn steps forward, "I'll go too." Everyone looks at him with suspicion. "for protection."

Leia laughs and leaves the room. Rey smiles at Finn and Poe, "well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm secretly terrified."

"I won't keep it a secret, we're barely big enough to be the resistance." Says Finn in a relaxed fear.

"We don't need to be afraid, we will survive, I'll see to it." Rey utters with complete confidence.

"That actually makes me feel better, thanks." Poe says

"Poe!" yells Leia.

"Coming!" Poe says as he sprints towards the exit.

"So, you're coming along then?" Rey inquires.

"Well, we haven't really done anything together since Jakku."

"That's true, but I'm not the same as back then."

"Me neither."

"It is good to have you back," Rey says, taking his hand.

"good to be back."


	4. Darth Subkon

Hux walks down the hall in the First Order base on the planet Jurio. He comes into a conference room and sits at the far end of the table. He wears a long red cape and holds a scepter that can only be described as overkill. In a ship above the planet, we see Ben in a black robe with his hair tied back. He stares at a monitor connected to a camera in the meeting room.

"What's this all about?" Hux says with a prissy confidence.

"The ten of us would like to know the First Order's next move," says one of the generals.

"What it's always been, enforce the way of life this galaxy needs."

"But we still have a war to fight, some planets still resist us. " the furthest man says.

"Ignore them. As long as we have the core of this galaxy and the republic is still gone, we are safe." Hux leisurely says.

"This is the First Order is a sitting duck with no ongoing mission, what do we tell the troops?"

"We uh…" Hux staggers.

"Tell them to sit idle, or stay aboard the ships. It's not that complicated," Ben Chimes into his microphone.

Hux perfectly copies with his own, unlikeable, tone.

A general from the right side stands, "the empire would never be this reluctant to strike. Without the resistance, we are free and prepared. You can't seriously just sit there, like a child."

The generals hand inches closer and closer to his weapon, while Hux sweats.

"Hand up." Ben orders.

Hux lifts his hand and the general begins to suffocate. He drops his gun and is lifted off the floor. Ben stares into the camera and kills the general. As he falls Hux drops his arm and walks towards the door.

He turns slowly towards the room, "please carry on."

Hux walks to his room, once the door closes he pants and wipes his forehead.

"You did good," Ben comforts.

"How many more of these are there?"

"Only three more."

"I wish you'd tell me where you're going."

"I'll only be a call away."

"Let me be clear," Hux says angrily. "I share the sympathy of these generals, what is the plan?"

"I'm going to find inquisitors vault."

"The what?"

"It's a computer, I'm hoping it can answer some questions."

"Then you'll have a plan."

"Hopefully."

"Hopefully?"

"Goodbye Hux," Ben says, shutting off the communicator.

He rests his eyes for a moment. He strolls to his closet and ties his robe tight around his waist. He puts on his gloves, boots, and lets his hair loose. He places a new helmet on his head and places a new lightsaber and Luke's on his hilt. We see Luke standing in the corner of the room.

"I'm glad you've chosen the path of learning, but what you do with it will decide more than just the fate of the galaxy."

"If you haven't noticed, I'm not the supreme leader," Ben remarked.

Luke laughs as he disappears again. Ben pushes a button in the cockpit and his ship jumps to lightspeed.


	5. The Northern Base

The garage door opens slowly, while Poe, Leia, and R2-D2 get inside an older land speeder. They say quick goodbyes to the station and set out on the vast grasslands of The Moon.

"How far is it exactly?" Poe inquired.

"It should be within the old city, which is only a few kilometers past that mountain," Leia answered while scanning the landscape.

"Is the city populated?"

"The record said they had 4 entanglements with the first order since the Rebels left, mostly trading and under the table, deals to keep them off the turf. I'd say it's possible."

"But, there's a chance it could be First Order territory."

"I highly doubt it, Lando would do anything to keep scum like that out."

Poe turns in excitement , "Calrissian? You mean we get to meet that Lando?"

"No, I'm afraid he's been dead for a few years now." Leia says seriously, "I have a feeling his old advisor would've secured this place the best he could."

"I'm not familiar with him."

"He's called Lobot, and he's half man, half droid."

Poe is shocked, "is that even possible?"

"Yes, and it works very well when managing a base like this."

"Let's hope we can appeal to his human side."

The speeder cruises into the city are almost completely abandoned save for a few creatures in the allies and homeless scavengers on the roofs. Poe stops the speeder and scans the area. Leia looks around and is drawn to the open spot past the buildings. They exit and Leia tells R2-D2 to wait with he the speeder. R2 beeps something snarky.

"Over there," Leia says.

"I'm reading that too, but it's completely empty."

"The base would be underground, that way the signal can better connect with the other side of the moon."

"There are two bases?" Poe asks.

"Yes, but the other is buried in the jungle and can only be accessed by the maintenance droids. That's why this base is so powerful, the entire moon is used to produce the signal," Leia explains.

"Clever," Poe remarks as they approach the hatch in the vacant space.

"Very clever, it was actually designed by Chewie."

"Really?"

"Yes, he's actually got some great ideas."

"Too bad only half the base can actually understand him," Poe jokes. He pulls the hatch open and he starts to descend.

"Wait," orders Leia," they probably set a trap for the entrance." She motions towards a set of frayed wires on the surface.

Poe ponders, "how do we test it."

Leia takes out a blaster and shoots down the hole, the two wait a moment, but nothing happens. The two look at each other with unsure looks when suddenly, a homeless alien tackles Poe and holds a knife against his neck. Poe struggles and Leia pulls the knife from his hand with the force. Poe gets the upper hand and throws the vagrant down the hole, and on impact he is shot by a droid.

"Stay down or I will fire again." The droid commands in a deep robotic voice.

Poe is stunned by the violence.

Leia yells at the droid, " drem-ya-tru order 33"

"Resigning position," the droid says as they here it's guns retract.

"Are you sure that's the only one?" Poe says in relief.

"If there were others, they would've made way more noise."

Leia starts down the hatch, and Poe follows. When they get to the bottom they see the room is long and dark, connected by three separate hallways. Scattered around the room, and near the deactivated RL-33 sentry droid, there are many empty cans and food packages. In the far left of the room is a cabinet, a work desk, and a makeshift hammock.

"Are those Lobots?" Asks Poe, grossed out from the scene.

"Not likely," Leia replies as she inspects the hallway. After looking down each path for about 20 seconds, she walks to the far right with a confident and friendly gate. Poe follows, but is wary of the passage. Every so often he stares down the vacant halls they pass, jumping at noises. At the very end of the hall, they see a well-lit room full of active controls. As Leia walks through the passageway she is stopped by a spear with laser edged tip. A large Nautolan stands before her, he is plump and old.

"Princess! I'm so sorry, I had no idea." the green man says, pulling his spear away from her face.

"It's alright, where's Lo?" Leia says with haste.

"He's in the other room, but I think we should wait. Sal is pretty angry, right now."

"Sal is here? When did he get here?" Leia asked while keeping Poe from asking questions.

The alien sighs, "About two months ago, he's been monitoring the other side from his personal transmitter."

"Why is he angry?"

"Your arrival scared off his dinner, and he lost two of his beast hunting droids in the stampede your ships caused on landing."

"Well let me talk to him and I'll-"

Poe bursts, "are we just done with formal introductions?" He extends his hand to the stranger, "My name is Poe."

Zorgoth switches his attention to Poe, now angry and off-put. He takes his hand, "I'm Z, and if you want to get along with me, you won't talk that way in front of Princess Organa again."

Poe is awkward and apologetic, but satisfied with the information," I'm sorry it's been an eventful morning. Now, who is Sal?"

Leia steps forward, "his full name is Salporin, and he's the man we put in charge of the southern base. He's an amazing mechanic, not to mention a great warrior."

"I was his blacksmith back in the day," Z brags. "We were fearsome."

"Too fearsome, they nearly wiped out the moon."

"And we have apologized at least 100 times," Z retorts." Besides, it's dangerous out there."

Poe is now overwhelmed, "okay, we need to talk with Lobot and Salporin. When can we do that?"

Z smiles and looks to Leia, "it could be a while, but in the meantime, we can finally catch up." He sits at his workbench and pulls out a large kettle, "it has been about 38 years since we've talked."

Leia sits down, "trust me, it went downhill almost immediately. Without Luke and Han, I had only 20 officers and 10 of them lost their platoons in the span of a month."

"Wow, I didn't think the First Order packed that kind of punch."

"They don't, Snoke has a helper." Leia pulls out a holographic map,"apparently he is the one who found the inquisitors vault."

"The vault is real?"

"I can't see how they could manage to do so much without it," Leia says as she begins to put away her map. The door flies off the hinges, as a droid is thrown into the hall near the group. Smoke billows out of the room, where Sal sits on a high chair, tending to his Hookah Pipe.

"I guess we can see him now," Poe gasps.

Leia leads the crew into the room.

Z moves to the side, to get a word in. "Guess who's back Sal?"

Salporin is a large Wookie, with darker fur and a blonde brow. He continues to smoke while working on his hunter droids. He looks at the group, scanning Poe first. He gets up and strolls towards the groups with heavy feet. He throats groans out the last of the smoke and begins to growl. "Welcome back, Princess." He utters in proper English.

Poe is shocked, "Wookies can talk?"

"No, they can't. I'm the only one."

"He was raised by humans, and it took him a decade to fix his vocal chords," Zorgoth explains.

"So, you've come back to us. How have you been Princess?" Sal says with a hint of distaste at her appearance.

"We need to send a few messages to our allies in the outer reach, and we could use Lobot's help in the field," Leia explains.

Sal chuckles and moves to the other table, "about that." He pushes a button on the console and the wall panel opens. Lobot lies dormant in the wall, his headgear looks rugged and slightly damaged. He is still bald but now sports an unkempt beard. "I've tried the best I could, but he won't wake. Not for anyone." Z shakes his head, confirming the claim.

Leia strolls over to him and closes her eyes. Within a minute he awakens and looks around for a minute.

Sal is genuinely surprised, "finally." He takes Lobot by the hand and drags him the workbench, "you fix this hunk of junk. I'm tired of these droids."

"You could always go out and hunt for yourself," Zorgoth teases.

Lobot finally overcomes the haze and begins to speak in a precise tone," are we still on the base?"

"I'm afraid so," Z replied while examining Lobot's cybernetic implants. "It looks like your systems are on the fritz.

"Does that mean we won't be able to send a message?" Poe inquires.

"Possibly, Lobot isn't the only one who can connect with the system. Most droids can, but this end is mostly input. The other side of the base is where the magic happens. Normally Lobot can manage both sides from here, but unless he gets better quick-"

Lobot's head begins to light up and he yells for Lando as if he's experiencing past memories. The lights turn red, and he begins to attack Sal. Z grabs a tool and manages to temporarily shut him down.

"Thanks Z, I guess he still has some empire in him," Sal says somberly.

Poe steps forward, "could R2 send the message?"

"That unit could work, but it's a pretty heavy journey. About two days time."

"Take the speeder," Leia hands Poe a communicator."Alert me when you get it done, and I'll send the message."

"I'll go with him," the Wookie says as he throws a pack over his shoulder and lays down his Hookah. "He'll need some muscle if he's going to make it past the first night."

Z tosses him a small, laser edged, blade. Poe and R2 gear up for the road ahead, Sal rocks the speeder. They set off south and traverse the mountains, on the quest for the base.

"What will you say to the galaxy, what could you say to set them free?" Z asks Leia.

"They have forgotten how good freedom feels, I'll have to tell them a story."


	6. The Dark of Lazarus

Ben's ship approached the edge of the remains of the Chommel system. He sits in a meditation position, floating in the center of the ship. His droid, BB-9E, sits in the driver's seat and awaits orders. Ben's robes, helmet, and lightsabers rest on his bed, and his hair is still tied back. The ship drops from lightspeed smoothly. BB-9E beeps, indicating they have arrived to the planet Lazarus. Ben reads a panel on the ship, it explains how the planet was once an active volcano, but old republic sith had terriformed the planet and hardened the core, leaving it as a desolate wasteland. As the ship lands he takes nothing with him, only his robes. He steps barefoot on the cold sand, the land is grey and barren and the rocks remind him of vast cities. He feels a sense of peace in the darkness. It is interrupted by a pull to the east, Ben feels the force guide him and hesitates to follow. He looks to the west and begins to walk opposite of the way the force is dragging him. His muscles tense up, but he strolls nonetheless. He finds it harder to move until he crosses a line of small rocks that seems to stretch from north to south, without end. He begins to walk normally when he is hit with a powerful hum coming from the distance. He stares at the mountain and the hum slowly becomes a voice.

"Follow," the voice echoes into the empty land.

Ben begins to sprint towards the mountain, at first his running is defined and heavy. Within a few moments he feels lighter and faster. He takes a long leap of momentum.

"Closer," the voice taunts.

Ben bounds and leaps, now using the force to propel himself off the ground at near impossible speeds. After about 20 seconds he is practically gliding through the air, and he finds himself enjoying the sinsation. He no longer touches the ground when he falls, only kicks off the ground with the force and soars again. Suddenly, Ben skids his heels and stretches his arms out to stop himself. He looks up and marvels at the opposite side of the mountain. He finds himself below a droid, that slouches against the cliff. It is at least 400 feet tall and comprised of many materials. Ben stands in awe of the massive structure.

"There you are," the droid says with a voice that vibrates the ground around him.

Ben is struck by the sheer colossus before him, he finds himself unable to speak.

"I am the inquisitors vault, and I know all," the droid claims. It lifts its' massive arm, which is hollow and shaped like a funnel. "Do you have an offering, Ben Solo?"

Ben wakes from his shock and looks around.

Luke strolls up from behind, "I'll give you a hint." He gestures to his hand and wiggles his fingers.

Ben looks down at his hand. He pushes his brow together, extends his arm, and conjures pure lighting into the funnel. The droid's eyes lit up bright yellow and the droids lets out a scream that devolves into hysterical, almost maniacal laughter.

"Thank you child, now for your fortune," the droid relaxes his arm and slumps down further. "You will answer two questions and I will tell you what you want to know. Did you kill snoke?"

Ben looks up, "Yes."

"Did you destroy the resistance on Krait?"

"No," Ben answers while ignoring Luke's grin.

The droid appears to shut off for about 30 seconds. When he awakens his eyes are dimmer, "you wish to know how to fully connect with people's minds from across the stars."

"Yes," Ben agrees.

"And you wish to know how to clone a force user."

"Yes," Ben responds in haste.

"The only way to gain the kind of mind is to give up a powerful body, I have taught this lesson before." The droid continues to rest then respond. "Seek the temple on Geonosis, what you find there will aid you in more ways than one."

"Thank you," Ben says.

"Politeness, is a rarity in my time. Most men are demanding." The droid compliments, "your question is not simple, for the force is connected through the blood that runs through. But, the connection cannot be so simply copied. The force is shared throughout all living things and in my case non-living. The only thing strong enough to power my profocies is that of pure force. People come with purpose, and leave with the destiny of all in their hands. If you truly want this course, go to the ruins of Kamino."

Ben turns around and leaves, without another word. He returns to his ship with feet of stone and gears up for the road ahead.

"Set a course for Kamino." Darth Subkon commands.


	7. The Deep Wood

Poe drives slowly over the rocky terrain, careful as to avoid any crashes. "These auto stabilizers are terrible, I wish I had brought BB-8 with me."

R2 beeps at Poe.

"I'm just saying, he's a newer model. He's got all the bells and whistles," Poe defends."How far until we get there?" Poe asks Sal.

"About 1511 kilometers."

"Didn't you say it was a two-day trip?"

"The range only goes so far, we'll have to travel by foot. These woods are dangerous, especially the water."

"What's wrong with the water here, is it poisonous?"

"No, but Z had a brother who took a dive and never returned." Sal looks at Poe, "have you ever met a Nautolan that couldn't swim?"

Poe nods his head and they continue the drive. They arrive at the edge of the mountain range, and they unload. Poe puts the rations in a pack and throws it over his shoulder.

"What are we going to do about the droid?" Sal asks, looking over R2.

"About that."

"Are you kidding me?"

"There are some pretty comfy straps in the trunk," Poe says apologetically.

Sal grunts as he proceeds to strap R2 to his back. The two trek through the woods and we've through trees. The area is mostly coated with a thick moss, the trees are of orange and purple coloration. While they walk they begin to notice a fog beginning to surround them.

Poe looks up at the pure blue sky, "what is this?"

"Oh no!" Sal exclaims, "head upwards."

The two begin to run as the fog slowly moves around the trio. They weave around the shifting ground as trees begin to fall around them. They find their way to an open area with stone foundations. The rock bursts behind them, revealing a large Tikulini worm. It begins to we've around them when Poe first his blaster at them. It ricochet's off the beasts head plate and the monster lunges at them. Sal throws down an energy shield and whips out his laser machete.

"It will last about a minute."

"How do we destroy this thing."

"So far I haven't been able to." 

Poe looks at Sal with a frightened look. The worm proceeds to burrow into the ground.

"That's not good!" Poe shouts, grabbing the energy shield modulator.

They jump out of the way as it crushes the rocks around them. Poe jumps to safety, but Sal is knocked to the ground unconscious. Poe runs to save him but is thrown to the side. The worm wraps around Sal and proceeds to squeeze him tight. Poe gets up, grabs Sal's laser machete and stabs between the cracks in the worms armor. It winces in pain and almost releases Sal. As the worm flails R2-D2 opens his hatch and uses his taser to zap the worm. The worm shakes and breaks its' hold on the two. Poe runs along the body of the worm and buries the machete in its' skull. Poe pants heavily and wipes the sweat from his forehead. He looks to R2 and gives him a thumbs up, R2 returns it with his taser. Poe proceeds to set up camp for the night, Sal comes into consciousness and they bond over their, at best lucky, victory. They share some rations and listen to R2D2 tell older war stories of the times before. They conclude the night under the star.

Poe awakes in a stone-like dungeon, he looks around to find none of his friends. His face is filthy and now sports a large beard. He searches for an exit but is met with nothing. The light that fills the room comes from below his cell. He notices a door in front of him and sees an impossible hallway. He screams down the hallway for someone to hear, but he is met with silence. He sinks down to the floor, his mind ridden with confusion, bordering on insanity. The ground starts to shake and looks down the hall to see Leia, in all white clothing.

"Where am I?" He pleads with his friend.

"Where do you think you are?"

Poe looks around in even more confusion, "I don't know I just got here."

"Are you sure?" She stares at him.

"I'm more than sure, this place gives me the creeps. It almost feels like it's-"

Leia looks at him with worried eyes.

"This isn't real," he wonders aloud. He begins to bang on the walls with his fists. He struggles and screams, ignoring everything around him. The madness builds until finally, the walls cracks.

Poe wakes up at camp, exactly where he slept the night before. He sees small turtle-like aliens with blue flesh standing around him, chanting. He jumps up, shocking the small aliens into running away. He looks around to see Sal, in a similar scenario. The creatures are using the force to moves their gear and disassemble R2D2.

"Hey!" Poes yells as he charges at the aliens. They scatter from Sal and he too wakes up. He then charges at the alien meddling with R2. It scatters, leaving R2D2 in shambles. Poe looks hopelessly over the droid, while the Aliens regroup with an older, leader alien with a beard. Poe storms at the group in a blind rage, "you better fix him or I'll-" Poe is lifted in the air by the elder alien.

Poe's ears ring and from within his mind he hears a voice, " We are not your kind." Poe remains shocked and powerless. "You must repay me for the fear you caused my people, in return I will fix the machine who has been touched by the force."

Poe is given control over his mind and proceeds to think out a message. "I don't know how to repay you, but I do know of a girl who can do the things you can do. Maybe she knows what you want."

"Show me this girl." The alien says as he peels back Poe's memory, revealing Rey to them. "We will find her and make her know how to become one with the force.

Poe is dropped to the ground and as he looks up the aliens vanish into the woods. "Why couldn't I have stayed at the base."

Sal laughs as he throws the repaired R2 and the gear over his shoulder. "Come on, we've got a galaxy to save.


	8. Journey to the Roots

Finn walks down the corridor towards the mess hall. He sees a group of pilots eating at a far table. They point at him and whisper. Finn ignores it as he walks to the front, and gets a tray. He stares at the food and wonders what corner of the galaxy could have produced such strange colors. "Is this meat or-" Finn stops as the man behind the counter sighs out of boredom. Finn makes a discouraged face as he turns and walks towards a table. As he strolls a hand pulls his shoulder. He turns and is met with a tall, brunette man with markings on his uniform, suggesting high rank.

"Listen, buddy, you may fool the general, but I can smell a rat from anywhere."

Finn looks at him with fear, "what are you talking about."

"Don't play dumb, I can tell your smart. Smart enough to join the resistance, right? Isn't that why you're here?"

Finn understood, "I'm not a rat."

"Then, pray tell, why would leave the first order. Stormtroopers are brainwashed from birth, how did you get so lucky. It's not every day that we get someone so willing to join the resistance, and we've never had a defector."

"Well get used to it, not too long ago I fought with my life for this resistance. I don't care what you call me." Finn says as he begins to turn.

The man grabs Finn's arm and the others at the table stand up. Finn shakes the man's arm away and steps back taking a defensive stance. The man swings his fist towards Finn's head. Finn prepares for the blow but is shocked to see the man frozen in place. His eyes move about his frozen face, shocked and searching for the source. About a moment goes by and the man, freed, collapses to the floor and scrambles back.

" I'd stay away if I were you," Rey says to the crew, "he's with me."

Rey gets a tray herself, the two sit where the emptied pilots table. They are joined by other resistance fighters. Some ask Rey about being a Jedi, others talk to Finn about Krait and what the first order is like. The two try to remain professional, sharing glances of awkwardness during the conversations.

After the meal, Finn and Rey packed their things and walked to the hanger to pick out a speeder. BB-8 rolls from the hall to greet them.

"Hey there!" Rey says to the droid.

BB-8 beeps and Rey responds by looking down the hanger.

"The Falcon, do you think that's a good idea?"

Chewie strolls up to meet the group, he growls in confirmation.

Finn smiles at his hairy friend and the group boards the ship and prepares for takeoff. The flight took only a few hours but the crew soared over many locations. It is widespread and cloudy. In the distance, Rey sees the temple. It's made of a grey stone with heavy vegetation on the northern side of it. At the top of the temple is a large spherical crystal that looks as if one side was shattered. The group lands about twenty feet away.

Rey begins to gear up when she sees BB-8 come from the hallway, struggling to pull one of Rey's bookcases. "Thanks, little guy, but I won't be needing them for now." The droid drops it and follows her to the exit. "No BB-8, you stay here. I need to do this alone."

"Yeah right, you're going alone," Finn taunts from the opposite hall.

"It could be dangerous," Rey warns.

"That's why Chewie's coming," Finn says looking over at the relaxed Wookie.

Chewbacca barks in a low tone and rests his feet on the table.

"What do you mean retired?" Finn pleads.

Chewie turns away and ignores the boy.

"Well, I still have a blaster and I haven't been on an adventure with you since we met."

"I don't want you to get hurt again," Rey whispers.

"I promise, I won't."

Rey raises an eyebrow to the confidence of her friend.

"Don't you know that I'm a professional now?"

Rey rolls her eyes and starts towards the temple. Finn quietly celebrates behind her as they walk down the ramp. As they walk towards the temple, Finn looks into the woods and stares for a moment. He sees a pair of glowing eyes staring back at him through a bush.

"Rey!" Finn shouts, firing his gun at the space.

Rey turns with an offensive stance. She raises her arm and the bush flies above the spot, revealing nothing. Rey turns to Finn with a tired look, "did you really see something?"

"Of course I did, you don't trust me?"

"I do," Rey says awkwardly," but sometimes you get carried away."

"Yeah right, something was definitely there. It looked right at me," Finn justifies while walking down the path.

Rey follows, still unsure of anything suspicious. The two find themselves at the base of the temple, which has about 40 feet of stairs to the top.

"That's going to be fun," Finn scoffs.

"Quit whining or I'll send you back, then you'll have to deal with the wild beasts out here," Rey threatened.

"Don't even joke about that stuff, who knows what could be out here?"

"Whatever it is, I'm sure Chewie can-" Rey stops and feels a chill run over her back. She looks off to the west and feels something call. She doesn't move but can sense the darkness ahead of her.

"Rey!" yells Finn, breaking her from her trance. "Are you ok?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Rey says, changing the subject. She begins to climb the stairs to prevent Finn from asking any questions. She feels like something was moving through her, clawing at her insides, begging her to go. It took Finn to help her escape, she almost wanted to thank him, but if she did he would worry.

When they reach the top, Rey stares into the open hall of the temple and looks up at the ceiling. It is made of wood and she realizes that the structure used an enormous tree as a base for the design. She strolls down to the end of the room and enters the next. She looks around and determines it's some sort of dojo. She picks up a decrepit lightsaber off the ground and tucks it into her pack. She moves from room sorting through various things. Finn remarks that they should've brought BB-8 for all the stuff she's holding. Her pack was full, so she lets various books, records, and scrolls float behind her in an organized line. Finn becomes distracted with the dojo and plays with the various sabers, staffs, and saber staffs. When she walks into a side room she sees a figure in a robe and steps out quickly, but the figure turns to face her.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't know anyone still lived here." Rey apologized, unclear of who she was talking to.

"Don't worry," the figure said stepping towards her, "I was just looking over things."

The items following Rey drop to the floor, "Luke?"

"Yeah kid, it's me. Sorry I didn't show up."

"Don't be, we couldn't have escaped without you. We both know I couldn't have done what you did. All I'm wondering is, what do I do now?"

Luke takes a heavy sigh, "you're not going to like it. Ben is following a new path and I suggest you do the same."

"But what about the Jedi order?"

"The Jedi order is what caused his tragedy, my pursuit of the old way was dumb. Even Leia knew that. FInd your own way." Luke smiles at Rey and she returns it. "And I have just the method to get you there."

"What is it?"

"To find your way you must look at all the options and the best way to do that is by looking to the past."

Rey's smile vanishes and she becomes uncomfortable, "what do you mean?"

"When I was scared or alone, I called my old master to help. Funny enough, I'm not the only one person you can talk to about this stuff. Your power runs through your blood like water, and the things you can do come from somewhere, trace them with your mind. Go to the bottom level of the temple and meditate for an hour, then you'll know what you must do."

Rey looks to the wall, dreading the thought of this. "Isn't there something else?"

"Sure, there's a ton you can do. However, Ben is very active. I would suggest you find your way before he does, I have a feeling that the path he treads leads here." Luke warns before promptly disappearing.

Rey sits in silence. Finn bursts through the entrance waving around a stick and making saber sounds. "So, what's the verdict? Should we leave?"

"No, we're going to the basement."


	9. The Ghost of Kamino

Ben soared over the vast oceans of Kamino, every once in a while scanning the area for the base. He thought to himself, would the vault really lie to him. Suddenly his ship halted and he was thrown to the side. After picking himself off the ground, he rushed to the window to inspect outside. Light burst through every opening in the ship as he recognized the tractor beam coming from deep below the water. His ship drifted down and Ben rushed for an oxygen mask. As his ship was pulled under the surface Ben looked over the sea life and vast structures. He peered down over the edge of his ship and saw the massive underwater base, he wondered to himself how he was to get inside. When his ship drifted to the landing pad the beam released his ship. Two large tubes on both sides of the base begin to open and release what looks to be a bubble. It spreads, maintaining shape, over the entirety of the base with great speed. When the two finally connect into one large bubble it lights up with a bright green tent. Once the light had activated the water around the base seemed to rush to escape it. Ben knew this tech to be old and very problematic, if the bubble were to corrupt and burst the water would rush in and destroy his ship. He decided not to press his luck. His ships computer warned him of an incoming transmission. Ben rushed to it and accepted the message.

"State your name, place of origin, and reason for visiting."

Ben could recognize the generic droid code, but it wasn't empire tech. He decided not to override it, "this is Darth Subkon. I come from-" He realized that it was running a check on him and that this title might have been a bad choice. He believed the next question could determine whether or not he comes out alive, he needed something out of the system, something under the radar. "I come from Mustafar, and I'm here for a tour." A minute went by and the response droid made a confirmation noise.

"Welcome to the Kamino Research Outpost."

The walkway lit up outside Ben's ship. He put his mask on and left his blades inside. He stepped out and breathed in deep. The air was artificial but pure. He strolled to the door and was met with a holographic tour guide on top of a wheeled droid.

"Right this way sir."

Ben thought that it was strange how the droid called him a "sir". He looked around for a camera or something to prove he was being watched. For some reason, he felt frightened of this place, with his power he should no fear at all. He strolled down the hall, listening to the droid drone on about the various features. Powerful telescopes, new nav systems, powerful weapons, and other tech that was at least 80 years old at this point. Not a single mention of the cloning process or the history of the clone army. No mention of Mandalore or Jango Fett. Ben had studied the history of cloning for a while, he found many interests outside of the force. The more he thought about it the more he realized that he truly didn't care much for the force or for the history of the Jedi and Sith. Darth Subkon was a long dead sith that turned to the light before he was killed in the Mandalorian-Jedi war. He looked nothing like Ben, but it was the first name that Ben thought of when creating a new alias. The droid was finishing up the history of the plasma bubble when he asked if Ben had any questions.

"Could you take me on a tour of the cloning facility?" Ben asked.

The hologram stood silent, waiting for the droid to process. "I'm sorry," It finally said as it vanished. The droid underneath suddenly extended the center of its body to Ben's eye level. It pulls out its guns prepares to fire. Ben rushes to the droid and grabs the center of the droid's body. Using his force strength, he crushes the droid's body and throws it against the wall. He thought it better not to let the base know he has the force yet.

"All I want is a tour," Ben says to the unseen camera.

"Then walk down the hallway." A speaker says from the ceiling, the voice was modulated.

Ben focuses on the hallway and senses strange gases and droids. "Nice try, I'm not taking no for an answer. I'm not afraid to tear this place to shreds to find you."

"How about I lower the shield and kill us both, you have nothing on me."

"Go ahead, I was going to do that on my way out anyway," Ben bluffed.

"Fine, but you won't get any use from the facility. It's all busted up."

"Fine by me."

"Alright, I'm coming out," The voice said as it mumbled and moved away from the microphone. Suddenly the door opened and a Rodian woman appeared. She took two steps and pulled out a blaster before she could shoot Ben pulled it from her hands and crushed it. She began to run the other way but Ben gripped her ankle with the force. He pulled her to his feet.

"Going somewhere?" Ben said in the darkest voice he could muster.

"On with the tour," the woman said awkwardly. The two walked down the hall, the woman was shaking. Ben almost felt bad with how scared she was, but then thought back to how quickly she was going to kill him, not that being shot on sight was anything new for Ben. They weaved through a series of back routes and tunnels. On the way out of one dark corridor, Ben tripped on a pipe and his robe was caught on the opening. He dangled for a second then fell to the floor. The woman looked back and before she could think to run, she burst into laughter. She fell to the floor and helped him up while laughing hysterically. Ben was so stunned by the noise that he almost hit her when she helped him, the pure joy in her eyes made him release a few chuckles himself. As they continued walking Ben decided that breaking the ice was impossible now and decided to just speak.

"Do you have a name?"

She turned, more relaxed now, " My name is Cim."

"If you don't mind me asking, how are you speaking English. I thought it was impossible for Rodians, with that kind of vocal cord."

"It's an implant, an advanced voice box connected to my throat. They're becoming popular in this system because English is becoming more widespread. The republic was more mixed and diverse in alien life, but, since it was destroyed, humanoids outway other species eight to one."

"Wow, I had no idea," Ben said sympathetically. If Snoke and Luke had one thing in common, it was that they both kept him in a bubble. The New Jedi and the First Order both had agendas, pretty closed minded agendas. Ben thought of how this conversation would've never happened had Rey not left him, this fact made him somber.

"So, are you horribly disfigured or are you really a sith lord," Cim said jokingly.

"The Sith are gone and I'd say I look fairly normal."

"Come on, take it off. I don't bite."

"Don't press your luck, I saw the gas in that room. You're as sketchy as they come."

"I know that mask doesn't protect you from poison, I used to work in a military production camp."

Ben felt embarrassed that he hadn't chosen a better helmet. "Fine, but don't get any ideas because I'll hear them."

"Don't worry, I know not to mess with wizards like you. I once had a boyfriend who could breathe fire, he was very hot-headed." Cim said, snickering at her own joke.

Ben rolled his eyes as he removed his helmet. She looked him over and almost reached out to touch his hair. "Where did you get that wicked scare."

"Nowhere, I've had it since I was young."

"Looks rough, anyway the facility is this way. If you don't mind me asking, what are you going to use it for?"

Ben looked around, "two can cover more ground. I need someone to protect a friend of mine and I'm the only one that can."

"I'm not sure how well it works, The last person that visited left when the droid pulled its guns."

The two enter a new hall, it is full of pods and chambers. "These are replicator pods, they make personal clones. Most clones have to be raised from an accelerated birthing chamber, but these were added about thirty years ago. There were fifty in working condition, now only twenty are left."

"I only need one. So, do you live here alone?" Ben asked curiously.

"Yep, I moved here to be with my brother. He was dead when I got here. I pretty sure a flood killed him, but I'm not sure."

"You don't get lonely?"

"Not really, there's plenty to do out here. Mostly building stuff."

"Nice. Now, how do I use this thing?"

"Just get in and I'll set it up." She walked to the control panel.

Ben looked into her mind and saw no sign of deception. He found it weird to know someone who was so quick to judgment. Perhaps it was her adaptability or her hopelessness to escape the situation, but she was completely comfortable to be around. It was a strange change in pace for Ben.

"Now strip."

"What!"

"No foreign objects in the machine, you wouldn't want it to be part robe, would you?"

"No, of course not," Ben said taking off his clothes. He was pretty embarrassed, but less so in front of an alien. He couldn't tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing. He stepped in the pod and the door shut behind him, he could vaguely hear Cim counting down to completion. While he starred in waiting he felt a vision take over his mind. He saw an empty world full of old bodies, creatures and people alike. He felt it burn and cool with time and among them was a shadow. It rose, attempting to form a shape. The more he starred the more he feared that it was someone he knew. When it approached him it was a clear form, unmistakable. Snoke. The pod opened and Ben stumbled out, Cim caught him.

"All done," she said.

Ben looked over the clone, it was almost a perfect replica. Ben moved towards it and saw that it had no hair and the scare was gone. He stroked its' face, remarking that it looks sad.

"I forgot to mention the hair thing. And it corrects any imperfections for recorded species in the database."

"It's perfect, thank you."

Ben looked it over and tried to connect with it through the force. He was stunned to find that it was completely hollow. It contained no connection to the force at all. He was saddened, once again feeling alone. He placed his hand on the clone's shoulder and closing his eyes, tears began to drip as it opened its' eyes. A tear fell from the clones eyes as well, when Ben felt a shift from his hand. He looked up and made eye contact with the clone. He searched it's mind and found only knowledge, no emotion, and no feeling towards the world. Purified and neutral, no sides. From Ben's hand, he pushed the essence of the force in a field around the clone. The clone closed its' eyes again and lifted its' arms slowly. Ben felt a weakness in the force take over his body but continued to complete the process. This was new, but it felt right to him. Within a moment Ben felt his power slip between himself and the clone. It opened its' eyes and stared at Ben.

"What will you call it?" Cim said, confused by what was happening around it.

Ben hadn't thought this over, he felt unprepared for the question. The clone stared blankly at him but understood what the question meant. Ben looked past the clone and noticed Luke standing behind him, he looked neutral and completely ok with this scenario. Ben felt as if he had completely changed without realizing that his feelings were nowhere near the way he felt when he did wrong.

"I'll call him Han. Your name is Han, and you're my brother."

Luke shed a smile and vanished.

Han seemed to almost smirk, it the way Ben's father did.

"Good name, now what?" Cim asked.

"I'm going to destroy this place," Ben said without thinking, "I'm sorry! I mean, you can- or should come with me."

Cim bent her small mouth into a smile and her ears perked up, "I'd love to. This seems like a fun group so far."

Ben smiled and the three left together in his ship. Cim took the pilot's position and flew it out after they dropped thermal charges on the base. He sat back and talked to Han, he explained that they were headed to a temple after they check in with Hux from orbit. Han seemed to know everything at the same pace as Ben, he just lacked reasons. Ben realized this was because his reason for doing things was based on emotional context. It's hard to explain a point of view to someone who is void of feelings. Ben felt like the personification of the phrase: "you had to be there." the thought made him chuckle as he stared off into space.

"Adorable." a voice whispered in the back of the ship.

Ben recognized it immediately and pulled his saber to his hand. Han stared at the space in silence. They could almost see a gray form, but it was unclear if it was there.

"Death can't hold me, I will reform. You were foolish to create him, he will fail you."

Ben spoke from within his mind, "I don't fear you anymore. You are weak and you only held me back, Snoke."

The voice laughs and seems to leave the ship, Han turns to Ben and the two share a moment of fear and confusion as the nature of Snoke's consciousness. How can he live on? How could he reform? The questions plagued his mind.

"Geonosis here we come, you boys ready?" Cim said with glee as she zoomed through the stars.

Ben collected himself, "yes. Let's do this."


	10. The Opossum and the Serpent

Ben's ship dropped out of Lightspeed a few kilometers away from the grand fleet. He uses the cockpit's transmitter to contact Hux. It beeps for a few seconds.

"What is taking him so long," Cim says impatiently.

"It's 3:00 a.m. He's probably sleeping," Han deduces.

Ben hadn't even considered the time, he was glad to have someone that could keep track of important things. Then he remembered how Han was actually born yesterday. He tapped on the panel a few times to refresh the signal. Hux appeared on the holopad, in his pajamas.

"Yes, yes I'm up. What do you want?" Hux yells at Ben.

"Just checking up on you."

"Well, everything's fine, except for the fact that you woke me up."

"A hard-working Supreme Leader like you should wake up early."

Hux stares blank at Ben, with a tired fury. "Who is this alien?"

"My name is Cim, whats this guys problem?"

Hux is suddenly awake, "and who is that behind you. He looks-"

"He's a clone."

"You made a clone of yourself?!"

"Yes, his name is Han. Now you'll have someone to help you when I'm gone."

"Why is he bald?"

"That's just how the chamber works."

"How is he supposed to help me?"

"He knows everything I know. He's very intelligent, he doesn't have my weaknesses."

"Fine, but I'm not calling him Ben."

"You don't have to, his name is Han."

Hux whines, "That seems a little strange."

"I know, but I'm ok with it."

"You're not going to use him as a punching bag, are you?"

Ben is fed up, "no, I believe killing Han was a mistake. I've accepted him as a part of my life and no longer blame him for what has happened to me."

"Wow, where did you even go?"

"Kamino and next we go to Geonosis."

"Why are you going there again?"

"There is a temple I need to see, it should help me figure out what we are going to do with the galaxy"

"You mean you still don't know what to do?"

Ben sighs, "I'm close. Trust me."

Hux exhales, "this better work."

"It will. I'm glad nothing crazy happened when I was gone, it's good to talk to you again." Ben says joyfully.

"About that."

"What?"

"I've got a story for you," Hux says sitting up straighter.

4 days ago.

Hux is scrolling through messages from the outer fleets when he decides to walk down the hall and get some tea. He makes it to the main bridge and approaches the concession droid. He asks for Deychin tea, but the droid won't serve hot drinks. He scoffs and orders Ardees tea instead. He strolls down the hall and a group of Stormtroopers is about to march in his path. They almost run him over but stop and stare fearfully. Hux toys with them by raising his hand slowly in a threatening manner. Then he walks away sparing the fools, he chuckles to himself at the way they shook at his imaginary power. He walks to his shipside thrown, he throws his cape to his personal service droid. He leisurely sits in his throne, about to sip his cooled tea. Before he can drink it, a lower ranked commander walks up.

"Supreme Leader, Captain Phasma would like to transmit to you."

Hux spits into his tea, "who-who did you say?"

"Captain Phasma, sir. She's on the transmitter, shall I patch her through?"

Hux swallows, rather hard, "of course. I'll take it in my room."

Hux gets up and struts to the end of the hall, then sprints to his room, forgetting his cape. He sits down on his bed and looks at his large screen. He quickly fixes his hair, pushes a button on the panel, and awaits the connection. When he sees her, she is heavily damaged. Her armor has been replaced with silver and black stormtrooper armor. Her face is charred and her eye has been replaced by a cybernetic eye. She sits in what looks to be the cockpit of a small cruiser.

Hux stares awkwardly, "Phasma, it is good to see you." Hux lies.

Phasma stares at him silently for a moment, "I need a crew."

Hux looks at his separate monitor, he bites his lip in fear. "The problem is that we pronounced you dead, so we need to add you back into the system-"

Phasma cuts him off, "Hux, give me a crew or I swear by everything you know I will tear your eyes out."

"Right, I will do that."

"Actually, I want a fleet."

"Now, you know I can't-"

"Hux, please."

"Right. It's done."

Ben looks up at his friend, shocked. "That can't be good."

"No, not good at all," Hux says embarrassed.

"Any idea where she's going?"

"If I were to guess, wherever FN-2187 went."


	11. The Southern Base

Poe trudges through the forest, his feet heavy with the new load, "Do we really need to take the worm's shell?"

"Do you have any idea what I could do with that stuff?" Salporin says as he vaults over fallen tree.

"No, what could you do that's so important?"

"I don't know yet, infinite possibilities."

Poe drops it, the weight is simply too much for his shoulders.

"Awe, you quitin' on me?"

"No," Poe pants, "just taking a break. Is that a crime?"

"I don't know, do you want the galaxy saved?"

Poe waves his hand, signaling that he is so exhausted that he can't properly banter. While hunched over he looks up to sky, holding his breath as to scan with his ears. He hears what could be wind, but the thought of it being First Order ships isn't out of his mind.

"How far do we have left?"

"It's just around that mountain, climbing will be easier if we use that shell and some rope to make a pulley for this droid."

"You're sure there's no way through the mountain."

"It's not impossible, but if there is one it could take a while to find. We'll just have to make the call when we get there."

Poe stands up straight planting his feet and throwing the shell over his shoulder, "Then lets get there quick."

The men travel day and night, trading weight and taking naps in the forest in thirty minute increments. The snacks they ate were at best savory with an emphasis on tang, it was not preferable. Poe slept well, but Sal had a hard time waking up. Wookies tended to suffer spasms in their sleep. They had to stop for half a day when it rained, the mud was thick enough for the two to sink. After around 6 days of travel, they arrived at the base of the mountain. Poe found a way to activate R2-D2's geothermal sensors. It showed three tunnels, one of which was big enough for Sal to fit in.

"The scanner shows it moving straight through, and it's only a few miles up."

"It looks like it's connected to a deep ravine too," Poe says concerned

"I think we can get around it."

"You really think we have the gear for it?"

"Sure we do, we just got to be careful."

Poe raised an eyebrow, "it's your call."

Sal looked suddenly conflicted, he shook the feeling away and began to walk toward the mountain. The two travelled upwards, climbing while pulling R2 in a makeshift basket. R2 beeped with haste and Poe asked why a droid of his type would be afraid of heights. R2 logically told Poe how if he were destroyed on an adventure with a hotshot pilot and a wookie it would be too soon. When they arrived at the opening they couldn't see farther than two feet down the path. Poe pulls out his blaster and shoots down the cavern. They watch the light fly about thirty feet down and ricochet off the stone walls. Poe nods to Sal and the two begin the journey down the tight path. After weaving through the tight space, they see various streams of light peering through the ceiling. They come to an strangely open area in the cave. The ceiling is close to wide open and the sun creates enough light that the two don't have to use their torches.

"Look at these vines," Sal says looking around.

"Strange, this wasn't on the thermal scan."

Poe moves to Sal and inspects the walls and floor. He sees that hey are lined with shimmering streaks of clear gems. Poe puts his finger on the edge and strokes the smooth surface. As he runs his hand across it, he feels them turn from cool to warm instantaneously. The streak and the collection of streaks around them begin to melt and flow through the rocks. Once they've drained, the surface Poe was kneeling on gives way and he tumbles down the cave. Sal screams for him, but Poe couldn't recover. He fell about twenty feet before he crashes into a deep pull of water.

"Are you ok?" Sal yelled from above.

"I'm fine, lucky this pool was here."

"Yeah lucky, I'll lower some rope."

"Good," Poe said relieved and still shocked from the sudden fall. He waded around, looking around and seeing the many traces of the gem's in liquid form in the water. The rope was about halfway there when He noticed something in the pool with him. At first he thought it was a shimmer from the gems, but on second inspection he saw something moving through the waves. It had surfaced about five feet away from him and it was invisible to the naked eye. It swam around, circling him. He signaled to lower the rope faster, and the creature began to charge him. Poe searched his surroundings, feeling lost. He saw the rope drift closer to him. He burst into action, swimming towards his blaster. The creature swept by his leg and Poe could feel it miss by about a foot. Poe grabbed his pistol and shot at the figure. Sparks flew and the creature flinched in pain. Poe smirked in success, but within a moment the creature was rushing him again. He readied himself and swam towards the creature with a powerful stroke. When he was close enough, he reached for the rope. The beast caught his arm and tore his skin before he could slip away. Poe gritted his teeth and pushed forward reaching again when the beast circled around. He began to climb, but was slowed by his injured arm. He could see the creature jump from the waves, thinking quickly, Poe swung his leg and kicked it back a few feet. He climbed about halfway up, when he gained an idea. He started to swing and Sal looked confused as to why he wouldn't climb the rest. Poe began to swing back and forth, until he could reach the wall. Clinging to the rope with his legs and injured arm, he drops his gun and holds the cave wall tightly.

" R2! I need you to-"

Without letting him finish, R2-D2 shocks the water bellow and the waves begin the move rapidly as the creature is electrocuted. Poe stares down at the water as the creature is suddenly visible. It is wide and has a goatlike complection. It has sharp teeth and scales of a yellow coloration.

Sal stares down the hole," That's what was down there? I thought you, for a second, that you were just having a good time."

Poe swings in the open and begins to climb, "Did it look like I was having fun?"

"Yeah, a little."

"I wonder why this section of the cave wasn't on the scanner."

"I think these crystals are the cause."

"Let's not stay and find out."

When Poe reached the top, R2 had already prepped a med kit for his arm. After bandaging his wounds, he and group went through the cave with ease. After appearing on the other side of the mountain, the group was greeting with an open field and a clear view of the Southern base. It was large and made of a matt steal. Heavy rust covered the entire structure and vines climbed the sides. On top of the base was a makeshift traditional Wookie tree house.

"That's my baby," Sal says looking over the landscape.

"We can activate the transmitter in there?" Poe confirmed.

"You tell me pal, that's the droids job."

R2-D2 beeped in confirmation and Poe smiled. It was rare that Poe felt so in control of the situation, then he thought about the worm and the invisible sea creature. The group strolled down the fairly steep cliff.

"Do you think we'll run into more monsters?" Poe said with a heavy sigh.

"Possibly, the base is only a few miles away."

Poe began to walk, but stopped when a great shadow covered his entire body. He turned, fearful, to see a large First Order Frigate. His jaw dropped.

"How did they find you?" Sal said, accusing Poe.

"I thought we lost them, they stopped pursuing our vessels about two months ago."

"Clearing you didn't, I should've known Leia would set us up. You can't trust the Republic."

"Don't pin this on us, let's just get to cover."

Sal calms down and turns away from Poe, "there's no point."

"You can't just give up!"

"No, there is a field above the planet, their scanners won't read anything but grasslands and seas."

"Don't trust your tech, times are changing."

"What do you mean?"

"The First Order can track through lightspeed nowadays," Poe says solemnly.

"No way!" Sal yells. Poe nods his head and Sal begins to walk towards the base. "We better be quick then, I have an idea about who we should transmit to first."

"Who?" Poe ruses to Sal's side.

"A friend of mine, he works for a company called Tac-Spec."

"I've never heard of them."

"Trust me, once we get to them, no one will see it coming."

Poe is skeptical, "See what."

"One call from them and First Order will fall overnight."


	12. Blood and Water

Finn leaves a collection of random junk and old Jedi items in the main hall. The temple is fairly simplistic with a layout consisting of 3 floors, each with a purpose. The first seemed to be housing and training, the second was food and plant life, and the lowest was a cave with large chunks of rock lined with colorful crystals molded into the roots of the tree. Finn begins to dig into the stuff in search of one his most interesting finds.

"I found it in the furthest room on this floor."

"What did you say it was again?" Rey asked.

Finn reached into his pile, shoulder deep," just wait, it's better if you see it first."

After a moment Finn pulled his arm out, his fist closed around something small. He held his arm out, and as Finn opened his hand dark smoke fell through his fingers. A crystal, completely black with shimmer on the edges of the stone, lay in the center of his palm. Rey looks over the gem with bright eyes.

"Which room did you find this in?" Rey asked with sudden stress.

"The furthest, that wall said something about a Master Juha. It was by his room in an open safe."

Rey put her hand over his, feeling the crystals aura. It wasn't dark or light, it was almost caught between the two. She had no urge to keep it, but she felt it was important. Finn extended it to Rey, but she closed his hand around it.

"Keep it close. For luck," Rey's smile returned and she winked to Finn.

Finn was now very suspicious of the rock and put it atop the pile of loot he had collected. Rey started down the hall.

"You going to the basement?"

"Yeah."

"What's down there?"

"I don't know yet," Rey said heading down the stairs.

The stairs bed over an uneven root, it seems to have expanded over time. Rey notices a string of rain dripping through the ceiling, she hadn't realized it had started raining. She walked downwards into the cavern and the light increased as she descended. As she strolled down the steps, she noticed Luke standing over a sprawled pilots coat in the center of the room. Rey stood beside him and he was noticeably somber. She didn't know what to say.

"This is where you find them," Luke whispered as he began to vanish, "these are your first steps."

On further inspection, Rey found that the jacket reminded her of Han. She picked it up and scroll rolled from one of the pockets. She picked it up, skimmed for a moment, then began to work. She drew a line in the dirt at the base of the cave, she could see the discoloration from previous lines drawn. She drew a circle around the line and made drew an "x" in the sand across from where she would sit. She stepped back, skimmed again, and proceeded to sit down. She crossed her legs and rested her hands on her knees, then she closed her eyes and waited. She began to think of Jakku and the moments of her family that she could and couldn't remember. The emotions began to overwhelm her, but before she could back out, as she had before, she heard Luke comfort her. She wasn't sure if Luke had actually appeared or if it was her imagination, but there was no going back now. As she sat the crystals around her began to light up in an array of colors; blue, green, and white. After a moment of the shine, the lights vanished. Rey quickly opened her eyes and looked around in the darkness. She was close to feeling discouraged when a bright light began to glow across from her. She stared into it as it began to take shape. A faded ghost emerged, sitting across from her. Rey noticed that the ghost was greyish, more white than blue, unlike Lukes. The ghost was clearly female, she wore shambled clothing and curly brown hair. Rey thought her clothes looked close to a dancer, but her complexion was fairly pretty. She seemed to not know where she was.

"What is your name?" Rey asked curiously, she knew she was her mother. She was anxious about what she could possibly say, so she started slow. Surely a name was a fair place to begin. Yet the woman sat and said nothing, she continued to stare at the ceiling of the cave. Rey was confused and asked again, but she continued to say nothing. Finally, the woman looked at Rey, she scanned her up and down making no facial expression.

"I had a good life, you know," the woman spoke. "It never lasted, I knew it wouldn't."

Rey looked at her and listened.

"My name is Carol. I grew up in a secret Palace on the moon of Jakku and was raised by a man named Kotoro. We were happy, but the gangs that ruled Jakku found us. They raided our home and took everything. My home was gone, they killed Kotoro, and I was sold into the slave trade on Jakku. I'd say Unkar was a product of Jakku just like them, so to say he saved us would be utter Bantha Dung."

Rey laughed at the comment. She had tears running down her face and her smile made Carol smile in return. For once Rey was ok with her past and thinking about it wasn't hard.

Carol continued, "once they fail at establishing a ransom for you it's time to get to work. It was either be a junker or find yourself on someone's arm, I got lucky. Your father was a ganglord, but I could tell he was a swine deep down. He was misguided and I knew more about business than most on that scrapyard. Together we made it far, but we got destroyed by the war. The first order raged and turned Jakku into a place ruled by who could find treasure in the ashes of war. Unkar got mad with power and it took everything to escape, even you.

Rey turned on her mother, "you could've found another way!" The moment of rage shut Carol up, she lost focus and the story seemed over. Rey sat silent, breathing heavy. "Continue," she finally spoke.

Carol waited for a beat, " I often wondered what happened to my family. Kotoro said that my mother wanted to keep me and that she died knowing that I was safe. I never met my family either, but when I was alone on Jakku I was never scared. When my home was being raided I shut my eyes and prayed for safety. I felt something hold me. Something I couldn't place, something that maybe you could. I never feared. Search your feelings, you are connected to something. Something is protecting you, why not reach out to it. You may find yourself in a strong place."

Rey was confused but oddly satisfied with the new view of her mother. The ghost vanished and the room returned to darkness. Rey was not ready for this step, but she knew it was time. She closed her eyes and when she opened them a bright blue ghost sat before her. She did not recognize him, but he she could feel his strength resonate in the room. Many of the gems had turned from green and white to blue.

"What is your name?"

"They call me Ben, but I was called Obi-Wan Kenobi."

Rey sat in awe of the master, "what is your story?"

"It's a bit long and we have much to discuss."

"Like what?"

"Like why you can't make a lightsaber."

Rey took a deep breath, "you can tell."

"Keep in mind, I've been dead for quite a while," Obi-Wan chuckled.

"You talk to a lot of other dead people?"

"Not much else to do. I'm glad to help you."

Rey felt comfortable with him, he was friendly. Her questioned burned inside of her. "Are you Carol's father?"

Obi-Wan sighed, "I didn't know about her. When I found out, she disappeared. I couldn't find her."

"I'm sorry."

"I've spoken to her in her sleep, but only some can do what we do. Blood isn't enough. It takes work. Your mind is full. You've taken the time to read, I can tell."

Rey turned at the sound of scrap metal moving down the roots. Finn stumbled in after them.

"What's happening?" Finn wheezed into the room.

"Sorry, just go for now. I'll tell you later"

Finn smirked nervously and slowly walked, in reverse, up the stairs.

"He seems nice."

"He can't see you?"

"I sense something in him, a spark. He won't use it, but it could help him live longer or heal faster. Most people have a little something, but the connection can't be forced. It isn't there at birth, you must earn it." The scrap began to hover around the two. "You've earned your power, but you are no Jedi. You lash out in anger and a suffering. Your drive comes from your feelings, it should come from morals. The law you lay for yourself binds your power. If you can only use your power when you feel anger or love you will not survive, and neither will those who you wish to protect. I learned this the hard way, and I've tried to teach it to many."

"I've cleared my mind, I feel nothing."

"You can't lie to me, I can see through you. Your hate for Han's son is misguided for he is confused and lost. He doesn't need you to find him, that is where you lack understanding. You consider his betrayal as a personal failure, but you cannot control others, only yourself. You must learn control, then you will be free to do as you please."

Rey sees the weakness in the words, "How can I do as I please if I'm not allowed to feel? That doesn't make any sense."

The old man smiled, "it will be easy for you to turn to your emotions, It is where your power bloomed. The force, as a tool, is kindled by control. It isn't a power that influences your decision, don't heed its call. Control is calling the force when you need it. I naturally called it, because I was young when I began. The dark side is powerful because it is a parasitic connection with your emotions, in exchange it has the most power. The light side is reliable and steady, it may not have the spectacle, but you are in control."

"How do I even start?" Rey said, resigned and obedient. His wisdom was dry but clear. The scrap moved in closer.

"The weapon of a Jedi works as an extension of you. Keep it close. Your fear is that what you read is the only reality. That your course is set by what color comes from that crystal. This is a lie, you can never be too old. Even Luke had a late calling. He may have lost his way, but he never strayed too far from his core. Close your eyes."

Rey obeyed. She sat still, awaiting instructions.

"Think about what you want. Do not let what you have been told determine what you believe is noble, you create your own nobility. Don't follow feelings that offer power, create power. What you want is never far, choose what you believe is right."

Rey kept her eyes shut and the scrap began to form a new shape. Pieces of root tore themselves and followed the flow of objects that circled them. A blue crystal emerged from one of the stones and joined the group. It was close to complete, but the gem wasn't glowing like the others around it.

"What do you want?"

Rey whispered, "I want peace." The saber moved together, "I want freedom." The saber began to wrap around the gem as it shone bright, in new green hue. Obi-Wan looked her over and smiled with approval.

"A staff I see, good choice," the old man vanished as Rey reached out and was met with the firm hilt. Rey smiled like a fool as he held her new weapon tight in her palm. She got up fast and to her surprise felt lighter and faster than before. She bolted up the stairs to greet Finn.

"Look what I can-" Rey stopped as she looked at her friend, hovering in the air. "Finn?"

Suddenly small blue men begin to come out from behind pillars and shadows, one simply appears as if it had cloaked itself for her arrival. Rey took a mighty stance, she felt the strength course through her. She ignited her blade and prepared for anything. Within a moment her feat, once planted and stable, were uneasy and still glued to the floor. She began to give resistance, but the force had held her in place. She watched as the men began to form a close circle around her, they chanted and the elder stepped forward.

"Finally, a host with strength like the ancients. Your power will serve us forever," the elder whispered within Rey's mind.

She felt cold, then she was free of her cage. She began to thrust herself at the aliens, but she was blocked by their fields. She felt powerless as if the force had left her completely. Then she looked at her hand and noticed that it was fading. She could feel her bones and flesh disappear as if they had never existed. She was mortified by the madness, and the feeling grew as her arms and shoulders began to give. Her heart was missing in moments and she felt it creep up to her mouth. The chanting grew and she gave to her fear and anger. In a moment she felt she would cease, she understood that she was becoming part of the force. But in this understanding, she found requiem for the fallen Jedi and Sith who, in death, knew the value of all things in the force. The moment lasted an eternity and strength restored itself in Rey mind. She screamed from whatever being she had left and her body slowly returned exactly as it went. Once her mouth returned she screamed, and her arms extended with fury. The aliens were shocked and began to increase their power, but it was futile. With a swipe of her hand, the beings went flying. She tore the temple pillars from the ground and plunged them back into the groups of blue men. They began to retreat, but anger got the best of Rey. She ignited her saber and cut through them one by one. Each of them disappeared swipe by swipe, becoming one with the force and nothing at all in an instant. When the dust settled, Rey was on her knees crying. Finn, free with almost no injury, joined her at her side. She explained the beings as best as she could, but Finn was just glad she was safe. They shared a hug that lasted around a minute then they walked out of the temple, hand in hand.

"You're sure you're ok?" said Finn

"Yes, you can stop asking now.

As they approached the Falcon BB-8 greeted them and helped Finn with his luggage. Chewie was outside, looking to the horizon. He roared for the two and they came to his aid.

"What did he say, I'm still a little rusty."

Chewie handed him a pair of binoculars. Finn stared into the distance as a First Order Frigate loomed over the horizon.

"What do we do?" Finn said fearfully.

"We fight."


	13. The Ghost of Geonosis

The flight would take a while with their current fuel level. Cim fired the engines of the cruiser and headed for a power station. Ben decided that a nap would suit him well. His fairly empty quarters were full of texts and monitors, leaving only room for his hammock and a small closet for his gear. He put his sabers on a desk and placed his Helmet over them. His hair was a mess, but he didn't dwell on it. He took a quick shower and put on a robe. He tied his hair back, laid in the hammock, and stared up at the ceiling. Snoke is alive, somehow. It wasn't that hard to believe, but he thought, if he had to choose, he'd much rather have Luke follow him than that manipulated monster. Two old men stuck in the past, manipulating his life, nothing new. He thought of Han, both his father and his clone. Somehow nothing felt immoral or impossible. He truly felt powerful, and yet he didn't care or even want it. He thought of his time with Cim, Han, and Rey as only moments. He drifted into to sleep and was awoken half an hour later by sirens.

"Man the gun!" Cim shouted at Han.

Ben stepped out to see his twin sprint for the gunner position, he made his way to the cockpit and stared out the large window. He saw streaks of green and red, a firefight. "What's going on?"

"You tell me, I haven't seen anything like this in a while." Cim barked navigating the fray. Ben heard their ship begin to return fire on close vessels, he was proud to see Han as a pro marksman.

"I don't recognize any of these ships, they're not mine," Ben said as he an idea began to grow. He ran back to his room and sat at his computer. He began to run mayday transmissions from his ship. A few were picked up and dropped immediately at the sound of his voice. The ones that stayed spoke of gangs such as the Guavian Death, Tac-Spec, and Nar Dazco. These didn't mean anything to Ben, but he did decide to join a side. He did a scan for who seemed to be winning and found that Dazco had numbers in this fight. He responded to their transmissions and agreed to aid in support. He made a judgment call and gave his ships signal number and, to his luck, his ship received forty percent less fire. He rejoined with Cim.

"How far is the power station?"

"It's supposed to be on that planet bellow, but the planet is under one of the gang's control."

"Let's hope I picked the right one."

His ship cruised further to the surface and attempted to infiltrate the shield openings. The system was too hard to crack with his ships plasma charges, they needed more kick. In his frustration, Han contacted him from below deck. The connection fed Ben an idea, and he took the wheel. Cim patched one Nar Dazco commander to Ben's headset. Ben introduced himself as Darth Subkon of the Verday Police, a police force that was generally neutral. The commander asked him to provide support in the main field in exchange for military favors. Ben was ok with this system and for the next thirty minutes he aided the squadrons and protected the Dazco Frigates. Ben told the commander his plan and he obliged as promised.

"Are you sure this will work?" Cim said with uneasy feeling.

"Of course, trust me."

"I've got a bad feeling about this."

As ordered, The Dazco ships fired tracking torpedoes at Ben's ship. He moved alongside enemy ships, using them as cannon fodder in his wake. He moved towards the largest ship near the surface of the planet and found a way inside. He jumbled around within the ship and exited as fast as possible. Ben watched as ship collapsed from within. As it lay still, unmoved by any force, Ben launched a thermal charge at its side and watched it drift the to force field regulator. As it crashed the field disappeared and Tac-Spec troops retreated through a hyperjump. The remaining Death Gang members fought desperation to escape, but Nar Dazco's main ship blew them to pieces. Ben was granted passage to the planet and met up with the commander on the ground.

"Darth Subkon was it?"

"Yes," Ben said through his mask, "what's the deal with this planet. Last I checked it was first order territory."

"Well, Guavian's have been waiting to take this station for a while. So, when the first order stopped invading the planet they had their shot. The first thing they did was put up the field, but everyone needs power. Lucky you and Tac-Spec showed up, we wouldn't have gotten through."

"So, what will you do with this station."

"It's best we keep it free, this planet might turn a profit if we let it open to all. Shady or not, money is money. Without First Order enforcement or Republic regulation, the free market is pretty much planet to planet. Lucky my boys know how to run things."

"Good, keep it that way and you'll find that you more than your share of help. Trust me," Ben began to walk back to his fully charged ship.

"Wait," the commander caught him by the shoulder," take this. You can fly with us anytime." The man gave Ben a small case of valuables; Coaxium, gems, and other forms of coin.

"Thank you, I will."

Ben boarded and handed the case to Cim, "something for your troubles."

Cim opened it and her already huge eyes widened, "what troubles?"

Han smiled and started the engine. Cim sat as co-pilot, she threw a switch and the ship zoomed through the empty space. Within five minutes they were directly near the edge of Geonosis. Han was relieved to see stars instead of spaceships in his way. They drift slowly down to the planet and find nothing but sand and rubble.

Ben looked up at the sky, "That's where they built it." Han looked up as well, knowing as well.

"What was built there?" Cim asked.

Han looked to her, "The first death star."

Cim looked at the sky, seeing only orange sky and clouds. The grouped walked about a mile, combing the desert with scanners. The approached a group of ruins and a couple hundred meters from the ruins the scanners went off. Ben and Han could feel the aura of the temple even though it was buried in sand. Ben and Han stood on the edges of what they could feel was the center, they told Cim to step back. Ben and Han raised their arms in unison. The sand hardened into stone and lifted about two meters above the ground revealing an opening with a stairwell. Cim was in awe of the structures quick arrival and was anxious to see what was inside. Ben, Han, and Cim walked down the stairs, within a few steps the room was engulfed in darkness. Ben reached for one of his sabers, but Han put a hand on his shoulder. Ben turned to see his eyes close together with a thought, an idea. He stepped into the darkness, far enough that he almost disappeared. Suddenly an orb of light in the palm of his hand shown over the stairwell. Ben marveled at the creative freedom of his clones mind and Cim was simply too impressed by the two boys to get any more surprised. They returned to their walk and Ben awkwardly attempted to create an orb as well. He got a flicker, but he was overthinking the ability on a deep level. He eventually gave up and left this power to Han, he was technically him anyway and he didn't really need it. He did have a lightsaber after all, and if all goes well in here, so will he. The inside of the temple was a simple long hall, with pillars in the form of many different sith lords. Ben knew of some, but not most. Between the pillars was a variety of creatures. The creatures seemed to be a different stone than the pillars. Ben wondered if the creatures corresponded with the sith lord. He could feel Han have the same thought and when he looked to him he had a smile. About 30 meters of hall lead to a pedestal with a scroll on top. Han looked to Ben, Ben looked to him with support. Han stepped forward and cast his orb into the ceiling, it revealed a stone slate. Han carefully took the slate apart, letting the light in. Ben thought about how he would've crushed it, and he wondered why he would do it this way. Han picked up the scroll and began to read aloud.

"The art of being a sith is not knowing. It is only how you feel and being honest. It is pure and real, the Jedi are slaves to their minds. They believe it is impossible to change. They prey on hypocrisy. I'm not the only one who knows the truth of the saber. Pure being is not through the force, it is knowing that the only thing we can know is that we know nothing." Han looked up from the scroll, "it is signed by Darth Tyranus."

Ben's eyes widen at the name, "what now?"

Han faces the pedestal and with a wave of his hand, it disappeared, revealing a smaller pedestal with a red crystal on the surface. The outline of the first pedestal was imprinted on the ground and when it disappeared, the floor near the second pedestal sank into the floor. The group heard the clicking of machinery around them. The looked back to hear the sound of gas, and in between each pillar a large cloud of smoke poured out.

"That doesn't look good," Cim said as she readied her blaster.

Ben ignited his saber and Han stood still. One after another the carbonite-frozen creatures awoke and charged the startled group. Cim shot through two with a quick shot, but a larger one shot his tongue at her weapon. Her gun went flying as she lunged behind Han, who had created a force field. Ben threw his saber and it twisted like a boomerang, barreling through four of the monsters. He felt unstoppable until a dark, serpent-like creature crept from a shadow. It took form in front of him, he could clearly see that its neck branched out into two visible heads. The third head swept from behind and caught Ben in his left leg. It lifted him in the air as it's massive teeth bit down just above his kneecap. The pain was unbearable, and Ben felt as if he could see the possibility of this being his death. Dying at the hands of an unintelligent creature because he focussed on a dumb move was not in his interests. Ben made an insane judgment call and pulled Luke's saber from his side. He ignited the blade and cut through his own leg. As he fell to the ground he extended his arm and shocked the creature with all the force he could muster. It was enough, the creature fell lifelessly. Ben, on his knee, called his second lightsaber and slashed the oncoming attackers. Han lowered his field for an instant, he closed his eyes and thought only of sinking into his mind. He pointed a finger at the line of creatures heading in his direction. When he opened his eyes the oncoming beasts fell into deep slumbers. Han let out a great sigh as Cim walked to every beast and shot through their heads. Han thought this was morbid could see the value in ensuring safety.

"A little help," Ben uttered from the floor.

Han's eyes widened as he rushed to his brother. Cim almost laughed, but she was mostly grossed out. Han pointed his hand at the stone pillar and fashioned a solid crutch. He lifted Ben and rested him on the crutch. Ben was impressed with Han's instinctive creativity, almost jealous.

"Thanks."

"Wow, that looks absolutely terrible, " Cim said looking at him.

"Trust me, I've had worse."

Han looked at him funny, " no you haven't."

Cim raised an eyebrow. Ben felt awkward, "well, I haven't been hurt this bad. I have felt worse though."

Han returned to normal, "That is true."

Cim giggled and Han returned to the crimson kyber crystal.

"Get it and let's get out of here," Ben said in agony. He was grateful that lightsabers instantly cauterize, but he couldn't wait for painkillers.

"Hold on a moment, it is speaking to me."

"That thing is speaking to you," Cim said, confused.

"Yes, it sounds as if it is in pain. A specific pain, one of jealousy," Han sat before the gem. "I want to help it."

Ben looked over his copy, "go ahead. Do what you must."

Han took a meditation position in front of the crystal, he sat thinking. He felt the pain imbued in the stone, the owner longed for power and hated his friends. The strength that the gem held was misguided. Han kept his mind on the gem and spoke to Ben without breaking concentration. "Are you jealous of me?"

Ben was shocked, "no, just curious about your power. All I feel is pride and joy that I get to be your friend."

"Thank you, what is your plan? You told Hux you were working on it, but I feel no plan in your mind."

"I don't know what this galaxy needs, do you."

"From what I've seen, no one needs anything. There is only pure chaos and peace. I suggest we let things take its course."

"The First Order wants control, it is a product of peace. Over control is the next step, when everything is fine, no one is on top for too long."

"I don't see the value of living at the top," Han expressed as the crystal flowed white in its center.

Cim joined in, "neither do I. Survival is all I know, and I like it that way."

"People should live as they wish. No more enforcement, the strong will survive." Ben said, "the strong like us. The strong like the resistance, and Nar Dazco."

"We can't help from here, and the First Order will move on without you and Hux," Han warned.

"Then the world will abolish them. If those in bondage rise up, there could be enough. We need the word out."

"How could we independently spread the message, without using the First Order."

Cim stepped forward, "Wait! I dated a guy, a Nautolan, that worked on a base. Zortin? Zoro? No, his name was Zorgoth. It was a transmitter the size of a moon."

"Where was it?"

"It was next to Mandalore, I think it was called Jurio."

"Then that's where we will go," Ben limping to the stairs. "After I get a new leg."

Han began to laugh uncontrollably as his crystal turned bright blue.


	14. Welcome Tac-Spec

Manipulation is a funny thing. Control seems like a pure form of power, but unkempt loose ends tend to tangle into knots. Of all the masters of the galaxy, the Genoharadan enjoyed power for the longest. The New Republic managed to stay away from manipulation, good or bad. The brief and bloody history of Genoharadan takes place in the shadows of the powerful and the wealthy, but in the modern day, a new brand of assassins exist. The ashes of the New Republic provided a golden opportunity for the last member of this clan to pursue a journey of great power. His name was Joshua.

Joshua Yastue was one of the last people in this generation to know about those men and women who lived for Genoharadan. He was, in a word, wealthy. He lived on a satellite orbiting Coruscant. The planet was generally peaceful, and trade was filling it with many different clans that got along. Joshua lived alone on piles of dirty money, as the son of a Chiss mob boss would. He only saw his father on his birthday, even sometimes only to sign a piece of paper. He had the best of everything and didn't use half of it. His life was an utter waste in a galaxy full of waste. A day in the life of Josh was fairly simple. Eat good food, listen to loud music, read old books, and sleep in a warm bed. His gym used increased gravity and his pool was breathable, this luxury wasn't cheap. He didn't stop living on this high until he had to and he had to when he looked at his monitor and realized the world was crumbling.

In the beginning, the First Order was an annoying advertisement for a war that wasn't really going on. But a few fat cats and the endorsement of an old wizard named Snoke turned it into an overhaul for the planetary systems that couldn't defend themselves. Joshua was an outsider, but his father worked within. Thomas Yastue died with the rest of the bosses in the Hosnian System. For once the world was screaming at Josh, "what now?" As always he had no answer, so he read. He traced his wealth. He learned of wars and politics, and the death that comes with it. He replaced his carefree mindset with morals as solid as stone.

"The world is of those who create and those who consume. We protect those who create life and consume beauty, by destroying those who create chaos and consume life. Power is unity, whether it is natural or planned." Those words echoed in his cabin.

Unity was something he did not know well. When the planet his father was on erupted, a secret vault in Joshua's quarters opened. He moved through the large library, to a file tucked away. He found a map of the galaxy with many places on it. He packed his things and took to the streets of Coruscant, searching for whatever unity he could find. He stuck out like a sore thumb, no street smarts and he only spoke one English. He talked to gangs, clans, clubs, and families, he knew nothing about the galaxies state. No one shared sympathy for a scared rich kid and chaos was blooming fast. Coruscant became overrun with soldiers, Joshua barley made it off the planet. Lost and scared he sped to a near system, bought fuel, and flew through three more. When he wasn't running he was reading, he learned more in that month than he had in the last twenty-four years. He decided to ask for answers, he contacted the great oracle.

His cruiser dropped from lightspeed above the planet Cytos and headed towards the coordinates. The planet was already dominated by the First Order. His ship was cloaked with the best devices. He navigated the jungle until he found a large rusted stone covered in moss. He pulled up a holo-pad and read the file on the Oracle. He opened his mouth to speak, but tightened his eyes and began to speak with confidence. "Qualti the wise, I require your knowledge." He stood awkwardly awaiting an unknown fate.

"Is that you Thomas? It has been too long, " A long serpent smoothly moved through the fog around him. It rested its large head on the stone, Its eyes glared at the sight of Joshua. "Who is this?"

"M-m-m-my name is Joshua. Thomas was my father."

"What happened to him?"

"His planet was destroyed. Destroyed by the same people who are destroying this one."

Qualti winced, "the Yastue's promised to protect my home and the people who live on it. Why should I help you."

"I only need information, If you help me I will continue to protect this planet," Joshua bargained.

"Good, what do you seek?"

"I need followers, how do I get people to join me?"

"Normally I would put my mind to the stars, but your father needed the same thing. Go to the ruins of Geonosis, dig in the sand and you will find your tools. Revive the Genoharadan, and steer the galaxy towards peace."

"Thank you."

Joshua loaded up and flew directly to Geonosis. Wealth has its perks and advanced sensors are one of them. Within minutes of scanning, he found, buried under about one hundred pounds of sand, an old droid factory. Surprisingly, digging was the easy part. His powerful tractor beam pulled all the sand off the structure in only a few attempts. He surfaced and walked through the ruins. The factory was decrepit and dim, he walked through with his flashlight. He didn't remove his hand from his holster. When he approached the control center he flipped the switch. The engine stirred for a moment then shut down. He looked up the history of the factory and found a way to connect his ship's engine to the factories. After an hour of tinkering, he managed to get the factory online. It assembled twenty droids but didn't give them any programming. The lifeless automatons lay on the ground. Joshua thought for a moment as he sat around the dark control center. He pulled the drive from his vault and looked for a place to put it. He stared at the main computer and placed it in an all-purpose code reader. The factory moved with purpose as it traded various limbs and body attachments. After a full minute of processing, the factory began to produce new droids. The dark factory floor was now covered in a pile of around fifty custom droids. They didn't move or take a position. Suddenly the computer woke up.

"Greetings," the AI spoke.

"Hello?" The voice was very familiar.

"My name is Thomas and this is the hive project. Codename: Tac-Spec."

"What is your purpose?"

"Let me show you."

The computer shut off and the factory floor begins to glow orange. Fifty lights began to move in the dark and the droids lined up and stood at attention. The droids saluted the center. The sound of their mics clicking made Joshua's eardrums ring.

"Long live the Genoharadan. Lead us," the droids spoke in a monotone unison voice.

Joshua looked over the sea of droids and the computer reactivated. "Don't you see Joshua, this is your army. Now, how will you lead them?"

"Like those before," Joshua said uneasily. He felt like this could be a test, " protect those who create life and consume beauty, by destroying those who create chaos and consume life. Right?"

"He he, right. Now let's get to work. There are twelve other factories you need to visit. Five for droids, three for ships, two for weapons, and two for headquarters. I've listed the places on your map, take these troops to the first one. They can protect you, once you've gotten more droids, invest in sponsorships. Show the power of Genoharadan through the new Tac-Spec."

Joshua nodded and headed for the door.

"Wait, don't forget the file."

Joshua awkwardly took it and left the factory. The droids followed him, each one connected through the hive. He felt relieved and safe as if his father was always with him. He took the pilot position and one droid sat as his co-pilot. The droid turned its neutrally expressed head to him, "Where to first?" Joshua looked at his map, punched in the coordinates, and jumped to lightspeed.

He went from place to place, getting the things he needed. Where he went, he shifted the balance. He repaid Qualti for his tip and freed his people. His troops infiltrated great factories with ease. Within two days, he had over four hundred droids and three main fleets. His custom ships were faster and more accurate than any other. The weapons came quickly after. Networking across the galaxy would be difficult. The idea of ruling through force wasn't in Joshua's best interests. He decided to revisit the underbelly of Coruscant, this time for recruits. His fleet was camouflaged and maneuvered on the edge of the planet while he went the surface with ten droids. He met with pirates, smugglers, con-artists, drug dealers, and any other scum you'd behind dark alleys and in brothels. Joshua and his "advisors" got the word out that a meeting would be held for those in need of work. Joshua met with many men and created a training program in the city. Within a year the Tac-Spec droid and contracting company had over guilds on the planet. Contract killings and other missions became routine, and by the end, the planet couldn't run without them. After a month of this process, he returned to Coruscant to name his official generals. The generals worked along side the hive mind computer, which Joshua names T3-33. There were now twenty men to ratify the galaxy from within the shadows.

While in a major city, Joshua was pickpocketed. His droids traced the thief and caught him a planet away. When they caught him Joshua demanded to meet him, no one had made his droids seem ineffective. The man was released on his ship and stood before Joshua in prison wear.

"What is your name thief?"

The man looked up, "they c-c-call me D-D-DJ."

"How would you like a job."

"I d-d-don't care much for those."

"You seem to know your way around the galaxy, you got past my guards and stole a ship within twenty minutes. That's no easy feat. I'm offering a life of power to keep doing what you're doing."

DJ judged the facility and planned an escape as he spoke, "what's in it f-f-for you?"

"You're going to tell me how to overtake the First Order."

The two worked together over the next year, DJ's methods were unorthodox at best. Despite their differences, they managed to make a fair team. They discovered flaws and by the time the resistance had survived the battle of Krait, they had cleared the outer rim of any First Order fleets. They replicated check-ins and managed to slip by their defenses unnoticed. From there they waited, pulling scams, tipping balance gently. Joshua stayed this way for months until a call from one of his first generals appeared.

"Mr. Yastue, I need support on the planet Jurio!"

Joshua was glad to hear the voice but concerned about the tone. "Salporin? What is it?"

"The First Order sent a fleet to my location, is there any chance you can help?"

Joshua looked at the planets stats and found they had only five droids near the base. He told him to hide and wait for his troops and Sal decided that staying put was the best option. Before they parted ways Joshua noted that some changes were about to occur.

"The resistance is about to spread the word against the First Order, do you think that will work with Genoharadan?"

Joshua jumped at the opportunity. "Give me the word and I'll turn their systems upside down, anything for my favorite Wookie."


	15. The Invasion of Jurio

Poe and Salporin moved slowly through the jungle, keeping an eye on the frigate. When they emerged from behind the southern base, Sal started towards the treehouse with R2 over his shoulder. He was about halfway up a vine when another starship entered the atmosphere.

"Is that Tac-Spec?" Poe hoped.

"No, climb!"

Poe threw his pack over his shoulder and climbed the vine, his arm ached. After ten feet of climbing, ledges and cracks appeared to ease him. They made it to the Wookie hut and Sal began to open makeshift blinds, revealing larger laser turrets.

"They aren't automatic, but they pack a punch. Man the left."

Poe moved towards his and looked down the large scope. He watched the ship land slowly and rest on the ground. He stared at it, wondering who could come out. His finger tightened on the trigger. The door opened and out stepped a Rodian, a Masked figure, and a young bald man in grey robes.

Sal looked to him, "do you know them?"

"The ship looks familiar," Poe's hand steadied. He wasn't going to shoot, not until he knew who they were. Just then a chill ran down Poe's spine.

A voice that seemed to come from behind him spoke, "I'm here to help."

Poe whirled around to see the figure, but the space was empty. Just as he was beginning to relax a droid dropped from the ceiling and stood in front of him, knocking him off balance. Poe fell to the floor.

"Greetings, I am a representative of Tac-Spec. You may call me, and other representatives you see, T3-33."

While Poe was getting over the panic of the last twenty seconds, Sal was greeting his pal. "Thomas, how have you been?"

"The project is doing perfectly, I see you've made modifications to yourself."

"Yeah, I can speak over thirty common languages."

"Very nice, who is this?"

Poe stood up and dusted off his clothes, he had no idea what attitude to have. In an awkward attempt at replicating his naturally suave nature, he said," Poe Dameron of the Resistance. At your service."

"Very nice to meet you," T3 said, curiously scanning his body. I caught three individuals coming from the west, two of which have force sensitive abilities."

"Two?"

"Indeed I believe the easiest way to dispatch them is to-" before he could answer, T3-33 erupted into shards of mechanical pieces. Poe looked down the scope to see the masked one holding a blaster. Poe couldn't see Kylo Ren or the Rodian anymore.

"We have to lock down the base," Poe yelled at Sal. They took the stairs down to the first floor. It looked exactly the same as the northern base. Poe weaved around the corners until he found the control room door. Sal braced the door with two tables and Poe knew that wouldn't hold them. "Do we have traps?"

"I have a few, but nothing that could kill. No one really made check-ups down here."

Poe began to become frantic as he tried to think of some solution. He stopped pacing for a moment, "do you hear something?" He slowly walked to the door and pressed his ear against it slowly. He heard mumbles and footsteps, he pulled away when he heard someone say: work your magic. The moment he stepped away, the door practically evaporated and the barricade clanged on the ground. In the opening stood the boy in grey with his arm extended, the Rodian held her blaster at Poe, and the masked one stepped forward.

Ben spoke through his mask, "Hello, mind if I use this station?"

Salporin began to growl and Poe held him back with his arm, "I don't think so buddy. You might want to clear out."

"That's the problem you see, I have something to say."

"Good luck with that," Poe glanced at Sal, who shot him a glance. Ben stepped forward and began to speak, but was cut off by Poe's blaster. With a raise of his hand, the bolt stopped in the oh so familiar way. The red laser froze and Poe's eyes widened. Ben pushed the laser against the ceiling and walked forward.

"I wasn't really asking. Now, where do I start?"

Salporin stared at the figure, "we ain't telling you anything. Dig around in my head, you won't last a second."

He looked at Poe, who was resigned to the situation. "That might be true, but he can." Han stepped forward and closed his eyes. Poe fell into a deep slumber and Sal struggled on the floor. Han spoke with some resistance, "He is tough to crack. But we need a droid to help us."

Cim stepped towards R2-D2, "This little guy should work fine." She tried to push his side capsule eject, hoping to the main drive. When she reached for the droid, R2 instinctively shocked her. She stepped back into Ben arms, stunned. "That was awful."

Han calmed R2's taser and placed his hand on the cold metal, "fascinating. I can read his code. The metals and wires have a complex system, if I can unravel how it works I can control him. You need to input the audio you want to produce on the base on the other side of the moon."

Ben helped Cim up and made sure the two of them were ok. He gave them both trans communicators and loaded up the ship. He hovered for a moment as he determined the trajectory. As he looked towards the base he saw something in the distance. He forcefully pushed the throttled as he slowly recognized the Millennium Falcon in the distance.


	16. Transmission from Jurio

Rey sped through the air, close to the surface to prevent being spotted.

"Slow down, If we stop here we can make it on foot," Finn requested.

Rey lowered the Falcon recklessly, her hands were shaking. The thought of seeing Ben again clouded everything she had. In only forty minutes the base was under attack, at the helm of the bloodbath was Phasma. The crowded town around the Northern bunker was full of First Order troopers and battle droids. After Leia called her troops, it took two supply ships to get effective support. Phasma had invested in a new Dreadnought and about five hundred special forces troopers. They wore black armor and carried laser shields. If the Resistance was outmatched before, they were definitely now. Leia called orders and monitored form the base. Zorgoth was on the field now, he was tightly fit into his old battle armor. He wielded a laser spear and destroyed soldiers in large numbers. His portion of the troops got the farthest forward before decimated by the Dreadnoughts torpedoes. The First Order had found a way to develop torpedoes that could penetrate fields through seismic charge based hulls. Half his squadron was down and air support was started to flood the planet. His men moved up and killed the far side of the First Orders position. Zorgoth looked to see a black and silver figure sprinting towards him. Phasma sported a blaster and a laser ax, she jumped into the fray and shared blows with Zorgoth. The axes finer laser cut through the unprotected part of his spear. Zorgoth smirked and executed a leg sweep, to his surprise once she fell her back lit up. She zoomed to the side, her jetpack on full blast. The speed was too much to focus on defense. With one swipe, his hands were missing. She planted her feet on the ground and spun with great speed, the ax swiped through Zorgoth. He fell and his squadron retreated.

Rey left the ship in haste sprinting far from Finn. Finn and Chewbacca grabbed a few weapons and ran after her. Rey stood at the edge of the woods, looking over the battlefront. She used her binoculars and zoomed on who was leading the fleet. Her heart sank with relief that it wasn't Ben, then her focus regained and she turned to Finn. "You and Chewie stay in the back."

"What about you?" Finn said with worry.

Rey ignited her double saber, "I've got this now."

Chewbacca and Finn strolled the far left of the field, the cover was close to compromise and the men were scared. Chewie gave them thermal detonators and charges to lay. The rebels abandoned the trench and hid in the town, when the troopers ran over it Finn detonated the charges and the men ran forward into the battlefield. After twenty minutes of fighting, the First order was pushed back on the left side. This failure caught the attention of Phasma, she spotted Finn in the fray of battle with her mechanical eye. The second she saw him she called her troops to advance on the location. Finn helped set of shield generators around the bunker and throughout the town, to provide cover. When he was finished he was ambushed by three basic stormtroopers. He quickly dispatched two of them but was becoming overwhelmed. He reached into his pack and pulled a random lightsaber from the stache. He ignited the yellow blade but was still struggling to shake the group. From the west, bolts of red decimated a few stormtroopers. Chewbacca ran to his aid and the two forced the rest of the troopers to retreat. Reveling in his minor victory, Finn noticed a figure from the east approaching quickly. Glimmers of silver began to bounce into his eye, filling him with familiar anxiety. He readied his saber and took a deep breath. Before landing, Phasma darted to the side and ran between Chewbacca and Finn, separating the two. She swept back and landed fast, she stared at Finn for a second.

"FN-218-," Phasma rolled as Finn began to fire at her. "Straight to the point, fair enough. Let's see what you got traitor."

Finn yells as he charges towards her, she took a defensive stance. She perfectly analyzed the maneuver as one they teach to new recruits in the legion. "All too easy," she muttered. As Finn stepped closer to striking distance, Phasma prepared herself. Finn suddenly deactivated his lightsaber and rolled underneath her ax, he took to his feet and ran Chewies side.

"Now!" Finn yelled. Chewie growled and shot Phasma in the back. The bolt deflected off her silver plate, and she fell forward, activating her boosters. She clenched her teeth, feeling foolish. She would take this anymore. She moved faster than before as she charged them. The Wookie returned fire to little effect, and she swung her ax downward. The ax as an inch from Finn's head when he was pulled backward six feet. Phasma crashed and quickly regained control. She stood before Rey and ignited her ax once more. Before she could activate her pack, Rey threw her saber and it spun towards Phasma extremely fast. Phasma tracked the object with her eye, determining where it would be. She readied her ax at the center of the hilt. Rey inched the rotated the blade to a perpendicular orientation. It soared alongside the ax and buried one its blades deep in Phasma's chest. After five seconds, Phasma fell to the ground and Rey pulled her blade back and rested the Hilt in her hand. She turned to Finn and smirked. The rest of the battle was easy, on the ground that is. The dreadnaught was still attacking, now without someone calling commands. It was sending a consistent barrage of ground bound torpedoes. They decided to brainstorm some ideas but were cut short by the sound of what looked like a meteor approaching over the horizon. Rey was afraid and considered telling the men to take cover until she felt a familiar presence just behind her. She turned to see Ben, cloaked in black with a grey mask on his face. He stood over the bunker entrance and looked hesitant.

"Um, hi."

Ben had landed a few feet from the Falcon, he strolled away from the battlefield. Once he made it to the town, he ran from rooftop to rooftop. As he looked at the ground below, he saw soldiers, blinded the promise of freedom or control, as something different now. He intervened on a group of soldiers closing in on a group of scavengers in the town. He ripped the guns from their hands and pushed them into the wall behind them. He knocked them out with the force and nodded to the citizens below. When he got to the bunker, he noticed that the Dreadnaught was inching its bolts towards the entrance. He knew he to stop it somehow, but he couldn't reach Hux without going inside. He activated his com and spoke to Han and Cim.

"Han, there is a ship over the horizon, I need you to destroy it." The line was silent for around twenty seconds.

"He's thinking really hard," Cim said.

"Take your time."

"I've got it," Han finally replied. The line was silent again.

"What's happening?" Ben asked impatiently.

"I don't know he went upstairs," Cim said. "This Wookie is crazy heavy. Ben chuckled and he heard shuffling on the com. "How's the new leg?"

"I can't feel the difference."

"Interesting, I actually have a bionic finger."

"Really? What happened?"

"Basic mechanics, It got stuck in a droid."

"Honestly, I feel bad for the droid," Ben joked.

"I would be offended, but the droid apologized to me. We were pretty good friends," Cim laughed. Suddenly Han spoke.

"I'm at the top, this should take around thirty seconds." Han stood atop the hut portion of the base. He looked over the plains, then the forest, and finally the mountains. He held his arms loosely in front of him. He broke two large parts of a great stone along the mountain. He closed his eyes and lifted them around two hundred in the air. Slowly, one stone rotating clockwise while the other rotated counterclockwise. As they began to gain speed, Han pulled arms close to his chest. They were now causing enough friction and force to show sparks and take a rounder shape. On the count of three, Han released him arms the stones went flying through the air. Ben noticed them over the horizon and couldn't believe his eyes. They soared upwards and Ben dropped to the edge of the bunker. As soon as he hit the ground, Rey turned to face him. Suddenly he had no words. He could tell that she knew it was him from the rage he sensed was building within.

"Um, hi. How have you been?"

Rey was speechless, she had so many things she wanted to say. Before she could respond to him, Finn had noticed the intruder, "Who is that?"

"Finn, stay out of this one."

"What? Why, we can take him," Finn looked closer at him. He noticed the twin lightsabers at his sides and the tied hair peeking out of the helmet. "That's him isn't it."

"I'll take care of it," Rey said pushing him back slowly.

"You shouldn't do this alone, we can help."

"That's not for you to decide."

Finn couldn't get any words out. He didn't want her to be alone, especially with him. She hadn't spoken of Ben since she returned. Finn knew the feeling of taking responsibility, regardless of the cost. He understood her place and stood back. Seeing her go felt like being in that ship again, heading towards the light. Finn and Chewie pushed the troops back into the fight. Everyone watched as the Dreadnaught was crushed by Han's boulder. The troopers were hesitant and Finn had an idea.

"Drop your weapons, join us. You are not a slave to the First Order anymore," Finn looked over the crowd and watched as over half lowered their weapons and the rest just stood, looking at the ship. Suddenly, those looking up began to kill the others around them. Finn rushed to the ground and shot the hostile troopers. He saved as many as he could and when he was close to a firing trooper he knocked him to the ground. He pulled his weapon away from him and pulled off his helmet. He looked at the man, he had thick black hair and blue eyes. His rage was unnatural and as Finn held him down it faded. He apologized, claiming that he had no control. Finn put on the ear to the inside of the mask and heard a faint but clear ringing. Finn's eyes widened. He yelled to Chewbacca, telling him to pull the masks off all the soldiers. It worked and they were no longer hostile. Finn considered this for a moment and began to get curious. He gathered up the helmets and began to listen in on every one of them. Only some rang with a high pitched noise. He questioned the men that had deserted and some of them had minor infractions in their time as troopers. Finn understood that if he hadn't gotten off that ship, it was likely he'd be a drone too. The thought made him angry and he knew that a message throughout the galaxy wouldn't solve everything.

Rey stood in front of Ben, wondering who would talk first. She felt his mind with the force, his calmness made her angry. She had the urge to fight or hug him, she couldn't tell. Her hand tightened on her weapon.

Ben took off his helmet and took his hair down. "So, it's been a while," Ben hadn't been this awkward around anyone in months. It wasn't welcomed, he swallowed his pride and got to the point." I'm sorry for asking you to join me on Snoke's ship, that was unfair and you were right to turn me down. I understand the galaxy a little better now, I want to help."

"What do you mean help?" Rey knew the answer, but if she couldn't trust her feelings then how could she trust the force. She thought of what Obi-Wan would do and came up empty.

Ben took the hilts off his belt and held them in front of him. "I realize now what it means to have the force. Luke, Snoke, Han, everyone was telling what to think. What to feel. I couldn't focus on what I wanted, which in the end was answers. This blade is red, not because I'm bad, but because my power comes from purified passion. I tap into how lost I am, how scared I was, or how hurt I've been. Then I use that. What color is your blade?"

"Green," Rey blushed. She finally had someone to talk about the force with and it was good to be able to say anything. "It means that I can use the force more naturally when I need to."

"I know what it's supposed to mean, what does it mean to you?"

"I'm not sure yet," Rey looked down.

"We'll have time for that after, I need to send a message. Do you want to go with me?"

Rey nodded and walked towards him, Ben offered his hand. His eyes had purpose now, he was ready to lead. She took it, and the two opened the bunker hatch and entered. The base was blocked off, and they could both sense Leia on the other side. They both ignited their blades at the same time.

Rey stuttered, "oh you should-"

"No no, go ahead."

Rey carefully cut a small hole through the barricade with the saber, once sound could get through she spoke. "Leia, It's me, Rey."

"Great, get in here. How did you destroy that Dreadnaught?" Leia sounded joyful.

"A-a-and Ben. I'm here to help."

Silence fell over the control room. Finally one Lobot asked, "Ben who?" It was quiet for a longer time. The barricade began to slide to the side until the space was big enough to fit both Rey and Ben. Rey entered first and then Ben. When he stepped in he was awkward and didn't know how to speak. Leia walked to him and stroked the scar on his face. He looked down at his sabers and held Lukes in her hand. She hugged him tightly and Ben began to cry.

"I love you," she whispered in his ear. He was as much as a mess as before, but now he wore a smile that made him look pathetic. "How are you going to help," Leia said, wiping the tears from her face.

"Yes, I wrote a message. You can read it," Ben handed her a small piece of paper.

"No, you can read it."

Rey was crying now too, she thought of her mother. She looked to see Obi-Wan's ghost smiling in approval, next to him stood Luke.

Ben walked to the microphone, Lobot was prepping the system. He gave a thumbs up and Ben opened the paper. Before he could start he heard someone sniffle in his ear, "Cim?"

"Yeah, yeah. You left your com on. It sounds emotional in there."

"It is, how's Han."

"I'm glad you made Leia happy, I can feel it from here," Han spoke.

Leia looked at Ben funny, "Who are you talking to? Han?"

"It's hard to explain, these are friends of mine," Ben explained. "Alright, I'm turning it off. You'll probably hear what I have to say on most radios." He hung up and took a deep breath. Lobot signaled to him, letting him know that he was live with the entire galaxy. No pressure or anything, "Greetings. Uh, my name is Darth," Ben was tired of the aliases. "My name is Ben Solo, and I was a former member of the First Order. I have learned a lot in the last few months, I've made many friends. I have learned a lot about the galaxy we live in. The First Order doesn't need to exist, but it will take more than a rebellion to stop them. Independence is what I believe we should strive for and I," Ben looked over the room, "and everyone who is with me will help. Together, this galaxy can be one of peace." The room was silent, "one more thing. Nar Dazco, continue the good work of protecting and serving the good men and women of this galaxy. Stay strong, and may the force be with us all."

Ben stepped away from the mic and gasped when he heard the click of the transmitter turning off. He looked at Leia, who was smiling at him, "that should do it."

Rey looked at Ben with a look of approval. She was glad that he found his way and wanted nothing more than to hug him.

"Hold on, I'm getting a few return transmissions," Lobot announced to the room.

"Who from? Leia asked him, looking down at her monitor.

"Tac-Spec, Nar Dazco, Fluored Grissmath, Yeta-Lern, a few from the Rishi system, Black Knights, and Supreme Leader Hux," Lobot continued on the list. Ben looked up and asked him to patch Hux to his com.

"Hux, what is it?" Ben said, worried.

"Hey buddy," Hux said sarcastically over the sound of cannon fire, "thanks for warning me about that whole inspiration speech."

"Sorry about that, my morning has been a little rushed. You were right about Phasma."

"How is she?"

"Quite dead."

"No offense to her inconsistent memory, but good."

"Agreed, let's hope she stays that way this time," Ben said. Curiously, he tried to feel her essence with the force. He didn't feel anything, but he couldn't tell if that meant she was dead or gone. The thought made his stomach turn. "So, what's going on with you."

"Something tells me the outer legions were communicating. About two minutes after your little spiel, five frigates started blowing my ship to pieces. I managed to escape, but I'm afraid your best ship is gone."

"Come to Jurio, it's in the Mandalorian system. We're with the resistance now."

Hux lets out a heavy sigh, "do I have to talk to people?"

"No. In fact, I think you should stay quiet the entire time."

Ben hung up and looked to Leia, "now the real war begins."


	17. Chaos at its Finest and Tales of Jurio

Change doesn't happen overnight. Over the next few months many things happened, the galaxy wasn't thrown into disarray as Hux's abrupt evacuation would suggest. The truth of the matter is far bleaker, but it builds over time. The First Orders first response to this was to elect General Corbin Danver as the Supreme Leader. He focussed his effort entirely on destroying the Resistance, Nar-Dazco, and Ben Solo. He shared the same mentality as Snoke, but from a military conquerors standpoint. The transmission started only a few systems to rise up over the First Order and once they had been pushed out, Tac-Spec greeted with a new set of rules. Sal and Joshua decided that the best course to take was to remain anonymous. Within a week, over 30% of the main systems had declared independence and started to create peace and unity among the planets. 20% of planets that conquered the First Order ended up under attack by either a gang or a clan, Nar-Dazco's reach couldn't save all from corruption. 35% were still under control of the First Order. The last 15% were a little more complicated. Some planets seemed to become vacant instantly and others sprouted cities without warning. Lobot called these strange events: the great reset. Luckily, for some, not all gangs can be bad. The Grissmath family created refugee camps in many systems and the Rishi system created various military manufacturing bases on metal heavy moons. A month into these changes, Tac-Spec's power was made known. Many automated systems that the First Order relied on began to fail at a constantly large rate. Their weapons dropped in accuracy, hyper-space tracking became practically impossible, and most droids became obsolete. Over 60% of stormtroopers began to rebel and the First Order was forced to begin rebuilding droids. Black and White droids began to sprout up on many systems. Despite these setbacks, the First Order continued to punish thousands of planets, now so more than ever. One strange day, a mining cruiser in the Hosnian system was overtaken by a group of mercenaries wielding red lightsabers. The Black Knights began to build a satellite in the ruins of Hosnian space. They committed many attacks on planets that had found peace. Within a week Tac-Spec had pushed them back as well.

These changes would paint the galaxy with chaos, but that small moon above Mandalore was shockingly calm. The changes they suffered were, for the most part, constructive. They worked together, traded names, and helped defend the planets in need. The support they got from the new intergalactic powerhouses made relaxing easy and the war didn't feel close anymore. It wasn't all good. The biggest change came on the day that Han left.

A lot can happen in three months, but with all these important people on Jurio, some catching up was in order. The week after Ben's transmission was full of reconvening friends and enemies. The first of which as Ben and Rey. Their friendship was complicated, but developing fast. She took to him faster than Chewbacca, the wookies' rage was difficult to contain. If Leia wasn't with Ben, he may have destroyed him. Eventually, Chewie would accept him and even talk to him again. To stay under the radar, the two force users took refuge in the temple. They meditated for an hour together each day. Connecting to force ghosts, learned techniques, and told stories of their feats. Rey met Han the day after the transmission was sent. Though he was strange and reminded her of droid, she became fast friends with him. The three met each day in the newly rebuilt temple. A few days into their meetings something strange occurred. After arriving at the temple and utilizing the dojo for training, they made it to the basement for contact with Jedi's of the past.

"Who should we contact today?" Rey wondered aloud.

"We should try Darth Tyranus, we found a temple that mentioned him on Geonosis," Ben decided.

"Perhaps, although he seems the defensive type. After all, he is the one to answer for your leg." Ben laughed at Hans comment as they continued down the stairs.

"Wait, what happened to your leg?"

"A giant snake ate it, it was a long day."

Rey was a little worried for Ben's sake, but he seemed unconcerned. She nervously laughed and continued walking. They set up the circle, as usual, and began to search the force. It was as natural as calling a name and they met with the frequent ghosts. Luke, Obi-wan, Anakin Skywalker; it seemed to get harder the farther back they went. Though Ben didn't tell anyone else, his personal goal was to contact Darth Subkon and learn his ways. Once they had gotten to Darth Tyranus's spirit, they noticed that it was corrupt. Partially existent, faded, it was not unlike Rey's mother. He spoke very little, only of betrayal. He seemed violently cold, within moments he stared hard at his hands and vanished. The group was disappointed.

"We haven't been able to contact a sith for that long," Ben noted.

"I sensed that he wasn't all sith."

Rey began to think of others to call upon, "did you see the others within his mind?"

"Yes, but I don't recall them."

"I did," Han expressed, "I drew the connection between him and one called Qui-Gon Jinn. Ben has read about him."

"Yes, he was one of the first Jedi's to master the ability to appear as a ghost."

"We should talk to him, he could teach us so much."

The group began to contact but felt something else pull on the room. The candles they had lit began to flicker and an artificial wind began to stir. Rey looked around and caught Ben's eye. They looked at each other curiously, but when they turned to face Han his eyes were closed. The dust in the room took shape, as an apparition moved about. Ben heard a voice, but couldn't place it.

Han's mouth opened, but the noise was deeper. "I told you, you are foolish."

Ben opened his eyes and grabbed Rey's arm, pulling her back. Han stood up and opened his eyes, revealing the yellow and orange hue, like fire. The wind began to grow and the three stood opposed. They hadn't brought their lightsabers, but that wouldn't stop any of them.

"This cold brain could use some heat," Han spoke slowly. "I'm glad you decided to give me an opening, I was tired of that old body anyway.

Ben stared at his twin and began to breath faster, "fight it, Han."

"Snoke?" Rey gasped.

"See, the girl gets it. Your friend is gone, I have returned."

Ben tightened his fist, "not for long." He began to sprint at him and reeled back to throw a punch. He lunged, but his hand reached as it impacted an invisible wall. Han's characteristically blank face was replaced with an annoying smirk. Ben backed up and tended to his hand. Snoke turned to Rey and lifted Han's hand. He unleashed a pure, purple, lightning bolt. She fell to the ground, unconscious. Ben steadied himself and prepared for whatever could come. Ben defended from the bolts, but the heat left scars on his hand. He rushed Han but fell short. He looked down to find his feet completely buried in hardened rock. Ben looked around for an option and noticed the kyber crystals lining the walls. He blocked a few more bolts and pulled a crystal to him. In between the spurs of electricity Snoke kept throwing, Ben launched the crystal close to his hand. The bolt caused the stone to erupt in a bright green display. It shot Han back into the wall.

Ben's feet were released and he strolled to the charred clone, "Stay down."

Han opened his eyes, showing its normal hazel color. "What happened?" He asked, carefully tending to his face.

"Snoke controlled your body, he overtook you while you were-" Ben was cut short as he was thrown to the furthest wall. The shock filled him with fear as he looked again to see Han's eyes shine brighter than before. Han struggled to keep control, but it was too late, the gap had opened. His body was now a host to Snoke. Snoke took a support stance and held his arms up, breaking the ceiling into large chunks. He swiftly left up the stairs, leaving Ben and Rey to be buried. Ben rushed to Rey's side, she was still unconscious. He held up his hands and caught the ruble as it fell. Slowly, darkness fell over his stone prison. He sat alone with Rey under the rocks, and when he heard silence he felt hopeless. He welled up, as he had many times before. He felt ungodly weak and more fearful than ever. He felt his hands in the darkness, the electric heat still flowing. He thought of how easily Han could escape and considered that it was possible that Snoke had access to all his memories. He thought of power and life, he remembered how safe he felt with Han and Cim. "Cim," he whispered to himself in the small cavern. His hand felt the force clearer now and he held it open, knowing exactly what he wanted. He watched light form in his hand, the force manifested in photons. He looked around and found that the side closest the stairs was less secure. He slowly crumbled the stones but focussed on keeping the top layer from falling through. He worked for a minute and managed to get a few feet forward. Rey awoke soon after, startled by the light in the palm of Ben's hand. She moved the stones faster and the two were free. They told Leia their unfortunate loss and Hux alerted Ben to the fact that he had stolen his ship. Hux warned that having a clone of him wreaking havoc on the galaxy was a small problem, but they would grow soon enough. A week later, one of Ben's censors shows that the Inquisitors Vault had left Lazarus.

Rose woke up about a week after the transmission. Finn was with her within an hour, and they talked for a while. He told her about his adventure with Rey and told her how much he cared for both of them. They shared their feelings and decided to be friends and to always have each other's back whenever they decide to do something crazy.

It may not be the best idea to party after waking up from a coma caused by crashing your ship into someone else's, but that's exactly what they did. Rose, Finn, and, our favorite pilot, Poe decided to attend a party that members of the resistance were throwing. Though Poe thought it was a little premature, he wasn't one to pass up a chance to cut a rug. The drinks were harsh, mixed by Sal in honor Z. Nautolan drinks were stiff to the core, about two drinks in and Finn lost his nerve and danced with the rest of the men. Poe and Finn danced while Rose played songs with the DJ, she mostly played Ithorian music. The mine she grew up in consisted of mostly Ithorian, the songs reminded her of her sister. Poe and Finn danced the night away and had fun until the alien boose kicked in and they sat around talking about their feelings. The party lasted two days and on the second day Hux joined in. This skeptic, precise, weasel of a man suffered the same treatment as Finn on his first day. Poe could tell that Finn didn't like it, so he did something. He managed to crack open the steel wall of fear with a poison mix of his own. Hux cried, laughed, cried again, then danced with everyone else. The three boys danced like problems were forever away. More and more people arrived as two days turned into three. The alcohol flowed and changed in variety. Poe taught Hux how to dance with spirit, Finn taught Rey how to slow dance, after Poe taught him that too. Ben arrived and the party stopped, but only for a moment. Finn and Poe took a moment to warm up to him. Ben was notably awkward, after all, he did assault both of them. Finn forgave him after he got Rey's blessing. After a few more drinks, Poe realized that Ben had dug around enough in his mind that holding a grudge would be impossible. He too joined in and proved that the force and alcohol mix like blue milk and Hrelan honey. Cim joined in and the party raged on until morning. Everyone woke up in the grand hall and agreed, the night was great, but like all things, it didn't last.

Salporin didn't mourn Zorgoth, instead, he carried on with the good work as always. The shop was revamped by none other than the friendly neighborhood traitor. After using many different weapons, Finn had begun to express a liking to melee weapons. They used different crystals to forge laser weapons. Shields, Spears, whips; you name it, they made it. The pride and joy that Finn made stemmed from the dark crystal he found. He made a custom gyro-sword. It was in two layers and when it was closed it looked like a regular machete, but when the hilt is twisted the inner section becomes perpendicular to the outside blade and the edges light up with a deep colored shimmer. He mastered lightsaber combat forms one, two, and any other form that didn't involve the force. He even rivaled Rey at sometimes. Within a month Sal had made him a beast on the battlefield, which was good news because the First Order was going through a change. Phasma now reigned supreme and the mysterious Darth Nabka and the Inquisitors Vault carries out her will.


	18. Coruscant's Protection Agency

Who doesn't love a good council meeting? It was held on a Nar-Danzo cruiser. Salporin was in charge of the seating, which led to some unfortunate arranging. Ben, Rey, and Poe sat together. Beside them was Cim who sat between R2-D2 and BB8, she acted as their translator, but almost everyone there could understand the droids. Leia, Sal, and Joshua. Resistance fighters, Tac spec reps, and Dazco soldiers sat in the pews. The last section was right of Leia's group and it consisted of Commander Philip of Nar-Dazco, a masked man in formal clothes, and Finn. Finn felt far less important than both of the strangers around, but he wouldn't say anything.

Joshua stood and greeted the room, "welcome to the first ever peacekeeping confederation. I would like to commemorate the Grissmath family for donating weapons and ships and for making sure this meeting happened. We will start with our intel informants." He gestured the rightmost table and Finn began to sweat.

He had prepared some info but didn't know if it would be relevant. Phillip stood first and talked about the troops. They fared well against the First Order droids but were eventually pushed back by the new group of combat vehicles. The commander concluded his presentation by introducing the new model for ground combat turrets and battering ram speeders. Next, the masked figure stood and removed his mask. Finn's mouth dropped and Rose stirred from the pews at the sight of a particularly devious face. DJ stood and turned to Joshua, stating, with his signature state stutter, how glad he was to be back with Tac-Spec. He spoke for around ten minutes and explained many topics involving the First Order. He talked of Supreme Leader Phasma and the changes she brought to the table. Within two days the fleets tactics had changed drastically. Ben added, out of turn, that this could be involving the Inquisitors Vault. DJ proving that he was getting to that as he told of three more copies of the giant droid, now for military use. It was clear that they had used its intelligence elsewhere with the development of more efficient energy management in their spacecrafts. The greatest feat, by far, was a planet-wide genocide. DJ looked down at Finn and smirked. Finn glared but knew he was telling him that it was his turn.

Finn stood up awkwardly, "I recently found that First Order troopers were forced to attack using high-frequency waves. I or we figure that they have advanced it to the point that they can transmit it to an entire planet." DJ sat, giving the First Order the floor. He smirked one more time, and Finn grinded his teeth. He gestured across the room, "General Organa and Rose Byrne have created a counter signal that will be activated from Jurio by lieutenant Lobot. The First Order is going to be investing any spare cent they have into creating new methods of oppression. Our recon has found two new cities within the outer systems. The stormtrooper program has taken an unexpected turn, I had heard rumors that the bodies fallen soldiers were being collected when I was in their ranks. I believe that they are adding artificial brains and body parts to dead troopers and sending them into battle. If this is the case, then the obvious defense is this." Finn held a spherical grenade in his hand, "This is an electromagnetic detonator. We've used them on some of their droid models and they seem to work well."

A soldier sitting in the Nar-Dazco section of the pews stood up, "is the resistance manufacturing these new weapons or are you going to take more from our clan." The commander scowled and signaled that the soldier was out of place.

Joshua stood, "Tac-Spec is now funding all weapon and droid manufacturing. Your clan will continue with starship production as the dossier clearly stated." The now embarrassed soldier sat down and Joshua signaled that Finn could sit as well. Finn sat down and Salporin stood next to Joshua.

"Over the last month, my cohorts and I have revolutionized weapons," the Wookie gestured to Finn. "The First Orders weaponry depend on specialized folding mechanisms for storage purposes," Sal pulled a silver tablet from his bag. The mechanism was a rectangular cube measuring 25 centimeters wide, 30 centimeters tall, and 10 centimeters thick. Finn looked at the device and couldn't determine what it was, but he knew that he hadn't worked on it. "I call it the Z-43 and it's the best multi-tool I've ever seen." With a flick of his hand, he opened it into a blaster shape," It can be practically anything. With over ten plaster types built in and five different melee capabilities, this simple machine should arm our troops better than ever before."

Leia smiled and stood. Everyone sat steady and awaited the final order. " Coruscant is the fastest growing city, with the least amount of First Order control. They have the most diverse people, the worst and best of everyone. It is where we will find an opportunity to destroy the First Order, there are forty people that have been selected to create the protection agency on the planet. The agency will be led by three leaders; Commander Phillip, Salporin Lofbow, and Poe Dameron. Defer to these men on any decisions. Good luck to everyone and may the force be with you."

Poe's eyes widened as Leia shot him a smile. He felt confident until Sal signaled that he would keep a close eye on him. Ben noticed that he and Rey were getting dirty looks from the people in Nar-Dazco, but the representatives looked intrigued. The meetings conclusion stirred the room, talk and planning began to break out. DJ decided to exit the room and move to his ship, Finn caught him in the hall and pushed him to the wall.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't crush you right now."

"Y-y-you, should be careful g-g-general," DJ smirked and Finn sneered.

Rose came from behind and held his arm back, "he's not worth it."

"What can I s-s-s-say, I get the job done."

The ships left for Coruscant the next morning. The bunks were in the hanger and consisted of doubled up hammocks. Rey and Ben didn't sleep, instead, they meditated near the observation deck. They sat across from each other, hand in hand. They used their collective power to search the stars for Han. They received a vision of Snoke at Phasma's side. His robes were stained and his hair had grown a little longer. His face was slightly burned from the explosion on Jurio. Ben sensed that Han's saber had been poisoned red by Stokes spirit. Snoke sensed their presence watching him and forced them back to the ship. Rey and Ben looked at each other and Ben gasped, "I can feel him. He's still there."

They landed and the soldiers carried supplies to an abandoned drug den. Finn commented that it was hard to deny that they were scum now. Rey giggled and Ben smirked awkwardly. It was just barely dawn when they arrived on the streets, but the massive buildings and structures blocked the sun from view. The walkway was dark and it seemed desolate. They had landed in a small cruiser that could barely fit the group. Rey could sense around thirty life forms around the area, hiding and plotting. As they entered the Den, they noticed an aroma, unlike anything they had smelled before. The rugs were deep purple and reds, made of soft fur. A light smoke drifted across the room as candles were spread across the place. Finn laid down a heavy box and rested on a mattress on the ground. He involuntarily sprawled over it and collapsed into the middle of the bed, he relaxed melted into a curved, balanced shape. He wheezed as Poe forced him to leave the perfect spot. Round the corner was an open window to the long room, standing on the other side was a four-armed alien in a dark shirt. He told them that dinner would be ready in around an hour and that they were welcome to as much as they wanted. The reached the bunks and Finn gasped to find over eighty beds, identical to the one in the hall. A man with a short mustache appeared from a far door and greeted the group.

"On behalf of the Grissmath family, I welcome you all to the safehouse. I hope the location is fitted for your comfort."

Poe stepped forward, overwhelmed. "I believe so."

"Perfect, you and the other leaders can rest on the third floor and hold meetings on the second. Right this way, Mr. Dameron."

Poe smirked and walked with Sal and Phillip. The next hour flew by as the crew spent most of their time playing games. The majority of the second floor was dedicated to collecting every board, console, or table that could provide entertainment. Cim challenged Ben to a few but was no match. His powers made each game a breeze, however, he let Cim when a few rounds. Finn napped for a while. Rose found a room full of droid parts, she found joy in compiling some of her old toys from the scrap. When dinner came along, the chief, Dexter, cooked cuisine from all around. He told war stories and tales of friendship in the republic. Rey had never tasted food of this caliber and was instantly infatuated with the diverse spices and flavors. The crew decided that the new headquarters would prove useful.

The second day, the crew hit the streets. Poe and Finn partnered up and worked with the Nar-Dazco to ask around. Rey, Ben, and Cim took to the high streets. Salporin and Rose worked to investigate the black market. Finn was anxious in the city, but Poe lifted his spirits.

"I bet no one here would even guess that you were once with the First Order."

Finn smiled, "where are we going exactly?"

"Our job is to talk to the second most prominent gang on the planet, Kanjiklub. Word in the system is that they have something that could prove useful to use."

"Is that why you asked me to carry the sword, from the way that Sal talked it sounded like you wanted them to think I was a Jedi." Finn accused as he tapped the pommel of his weapon.

"You caught on quick pal, I'm proud. That is the plan, some simple threats and a cloak will get you far. Word of the crazy guy that follows Phasma around should scare those gangsters."

"And if it doesn't work?"

"Tac-Spec will be watching us inside."

"That does help, thank you."

"What? You don't trust me?"

"Not if I don't have to," Finn mocked. "So what's this item"

Poe laughed at Finn's confidence and turned a corner into an alley, "Let's find out."

The two walked further into the darkness. Poe handed Finn the cloak and he slipped it on, getting it caught on the sheath. They passed a roughed up wall and a homeless man.

"Pardon some bread?" The old vagrant mumbled.

Poe cleared his throat, "only if you have some milk." Poe spoke the phrase in an otherly tongue. Finn was shocked at the sudden skill. The vagrant nodded and triggered the wall behind him to slide open. The rebels walked through the hole only to have it close behind them. It became pure dark in the room until the lights suddenly awoke. The two were standing in what looked to be a lobby. They walked to the front desk and were greeted by a droid. They stated their names and were summoned by a lead boss. The two were lead by the droid up and down a labyrinth of stairs. They entered a small room surrounded by guards. The boss sat in a lounge chair, he drank from a large glass and didn't speak much. Poe attempted negotiation peacefully, but they were overly defensive. After around a minute, Poe got tired of speaking to walls. He nodded to Finn. Finn scanned the room and decided that the guards wouldn't stand a chance if they didn't make the first move. He stepped forward and to his luck, the guards didn't budge. He drew his blade swiftly, throwing his cloak aside. He twisted his grip around the hilt and blade split. Before it could fully charge, Finn had overtaken two of the guards. He focussed and killed the last four. The Fifth had drawn his gun when Finn swiped through him. The room was now empty and the suave boss trebled before the dark blade. The terrified man led them down the hall to a small room, he opened the door to reveal an orb in the center of the room.

"What is this?" Poe asked defensively.

"They call it Palantiri."

"What does it do?"

He carefully moved over to it, "if you press this button the top opens. Then you look in the small hole. Try it."

Poe moved over to the orb, suspiciously. The Boss shuffled under his cape and pulled a weapon when Poe was close. Poe reacted quick and pulled his pistol. The Boss fell quickly, seared through. Poe inched closer to the orb.

"Careful, it could be a trap," Finn warned.

"I think I know what this is," Poe leaned down and pressed his eye against the hole. He saw, within, millions of planets. He could focus on a certain section and it would bring it closer. He zoomed on a distant planet and pulled close. He figured out how to manipulate it with his eyesight and spun the planet until he saw a city. He focussed more and found a small boy, playing ball in a town square. Poe pulled away and stared at Finn, "try this."

Finn was blown away by the device and the two decided that this would be a great asset to the agency. They grabbed the Palantiri and returned to headquarters.

Salporin and Rose didn't find much remaining of the black market, but they met commoners who used it as a mall. They exchanged everything there and it was far less devious than suggested. They found out that the people and charge were descendants of the old clone army. They struck a deal with their new friends and the agency vowed protection and support.

Ben and Rey faced some problems in returning to the Jedi temple. The entrance to the temple was completely blocked and they decided to find another way in.

"Why don't we just bust it open?" Rey asked Ben.

Before Ben could answer Cim, intuitively, chimed in. "Because then we'd lose the element of surprise." It was clear, from her snarky tone, that she wasn't very fond of Rey.

"Exactly, when we arrived a sensed darkness behind these walls. We should find a way a quiet way in." Ben explained.

"Right," Rey awkwardly resigned. "How about the window."

Ben pondered, "That would work. But, I don't have a hook. How would Cim get up there?"

"She doesn't have to come, does she?"

Cim was offended but kept cool, "I do if you want to reactivate the system here."

"I'm a mechanic too."

"Keep telling yourself, princess."

Rey clenched her fist, and Ben didn't know what to do. Of all the possibilities he'd considered, this was not one of them. The arguing drowned Ben's thoughts and solutions, and in the fray, he felt a stir in the distance.

"Hold on, Ben said, quieting the girls. He looked away for a moment and started walking, "you guys can continue. I'll be back soon."

The two women stood, shocked at his wandering. They suddenly felt ashamed of their immaturity and Cim decided to apologize. Rey followed and the two exchanged stories.

Ben followed the force down the street and stopped at a small building. He entered to find ash and vacancy, but the feeling lingered. He walked up the stairs and stopped at the rooms. He heard a stir from the corner of one and conjured a gust of wind over the spot. A blanket shot from a child, who looked up and sprinted to another room. "Wait!" Ben yelled as he rushed after the Zabrakian boy. He extended his arm to freeze him, but decided against it. He sped up and grabbed the boy by the shirt.

"Stop, I'm not going to hurt you."

"Leave me alone!"

Ben tried to hold him but was struggling. The boy became enraged, and with a deep breath, he blew Ben through the wall. Ben didn't have any remorse now, he held him in place. The boy's eyes moved sporadically in his invisible prison. Ben walked to him and had the urge to invade his mind. He thought twice and decided to share his own. He placed his hands on the boy's temple and closed his eyes. The boy followed and from within his mind, they played. The boy's mind was poisoned with war and distrust. Ben realized who knew the most about that and reformed in the space as his younger self. The two played and ran, while Ben collected information on his history. Ben opened his eyes to see the boy crying, he realized that he had never played with anyone before. The boy opened his eyes and hugged Ben close.

"Come with me Gona, we have much to discuss."

Cim and Rey had become fast friends. They had a lot in common and found their histories matched up fairly well. Despite this, they were still both jealous of each other. Cim found Rey's power incredibly alluring and Rey longed to be as comfortable with Ben as Cim was. During a conversation on the fastest speeder models, Ben walked back with Gona.

"Guys, this is Gona. Gona, this is-"

"Cim and Rey, I've seen them before."

Cim and Rey looked at each other, "you have?"

"Oh, I mean in his memories," Gona said stoically.

Ben suddenly saw how sharing memories of other was a bit strange, "sorry. It saved time."

"Its fine, just strange," Rey apologized.

"So, did you find a way in?"

The girls looked at each other again and became embarrassed. Gona looked over the temple, "oh. I know a way in." They all looked at the boy, "yeah. There's a way in around back, we should take my shuttle.

Cim looked at him, wide-eyed," you have a shuttle?"

They flew around back and scanned the area. They discovered that the Black Knight's had actually left about a week earlier. Ben was stunned by this but didn't question it too much. Cim and Tac-Spec droids brought the old temple to life and it functioned perfectly. Ben, Rey, Cim, and now Gona traveled back to headquarters and told the leaders the news. Over half the soldiers were moved to the temple and Ben, with Hux as his advisor, became the general of that territory.

A month went by and not much changed, Coruscant began to flourish as it did once before. The Palantiri proved useful in calculating incoming attacks, but a weakness they had not foreseen appeared one morning. Poe was startled but readied his troops as planned. Little did he know, this would be the last stand of the First Order.


	19. The Battle of Coruscant

Coruscant was traditionally sunny late in the day, but the fleet blotted out the sky. Lobot contacted Leia shortly after the First Order's arrival, he confirmed that their rage inducing signals were successfully blocked. Leia mentioned the Palantiri and Lobot told them that this device was a too way mirror. The fleet that loomed over Coruscant was not Phasma's. It was, in fact, the first of a two part assault led by Snoke. Ben knew as soon they arrived that it was him and that now was the time. Contrary to Poe's expectations, they stayed in the air. The agencies two bases waited patiently for an attack, but nothing came. Ben and Rey led the citizens to the basement floor of the Jedi temple. Gona helped them remain calm and made a vow to Ben to never give up if the base was infiltrated. Ben wished he'd had more time with Gona before the assault, but knew that the drive of protected his newfound people would make it all worthwhile. The Grissmath headquarters also prepared for battle, their ground vehicles were fast. Finn and Cim both commanded small troops of Tac-Spec droids. Salporin needed someone to help support on the battlefield, Poe had established that if air support was needed he would lead one of the fleets. Salporin took to the quiet redhead for advice. Hux was shocked that anyone would talk to him, he had changed his look to resemble a common soldier. Salporin knew a mind when he saw one, he could tell that Hux was an unused asset.

"What's your shtick kid?"

"None of your business, sir."

"You've got spunk, a bit too cocky to be a soldier," Salporin deduced while moving in to sniff him. "And from your sent I'm guessing you're uncoordinated. Hux put his head down. "Well kid, I'm not buying it. You're gonna lead the southern troops."

Hux looked up, "you can't be serious."

"I am."

"You just met me today."

"I also have a reputation to uphold to don't let me down."

Hux was stunned, but followed him to the field. After an oversold introduction to his troops, Hux spoke in front of his troops with his signature aggressive tone. To his surprise, everyone reacted well to his overconfident strategy rundown. They all fed off of it and were excited to fight on the battlefield.

Ben, Rey, and Poe spoke over holopad about protocol for a firefight. The thought of it made Ben anxious to get onto Snoke's ship. Rey and Chewbacca would draw out an aerial fleet. While Ben and Poe tag teamed an offense. Poe and Ben discussed strategies and found that their methods flowed together fairly well, it also helped that Ben knew every thought Poe had before he had it.

While the plan was set in place, they made the decision to destroy the Palantiri. Without the insight they were accidentally streaming to whoever had control of the other Palantiri, they could be sure they were safe. The First Order's first move took form as a large beam, tearing through the planets protection field. The shine of the reflector shield faded as it managed to cut through, the shield frayed the beam and tore through three buildings. Two outward squadrons evaded the destruction but lost a vehicle and five men. The shield was highly unstable and collapsed within minutes. Despite the effectiveness of the beam, the fleet stood still once more. Leia sent Poe a message warning that a second fleet had appeared over the opposite side of the planet, and was dropping troops fast. First Order troops invaded and began capturing citizens. Salporin knew it was a ploy to separate the troops. Rey and Chewie decided to take their squadrons around and leave Snoke's fleet for Ben and Poe. Rey wasn't sure about this idea, Ben had been meditating more often and without Rey. He was trying to establish a connection with Han, but he was growing distant. Ben gave Rey words of encouragement and they shared a hug before moving to their positions. Ben's working plan was to board their ship with and disconnect the laser. His fleet was made up of old fashioned Y-wings and as a parting gift, Chewie let Ben and Poe fly the Falcon. The fleet was met by Tie-Fighters which were easy to evade. After ten minutes of combat, Ben and Poe got close. Ben moved to the gunner position and loaded some explosive bolts. They zoomed in close and Ben was prepared to the release the charges up the barrel of the cannon. A part of him wanted the explosion to kill Snoke, and in turn Han. He thought the death would give closure, no matter how much he wanted his brother back. He took position but couldn't pull the trigger.

"Now Ben!"

"I can't," Ben said as he felt Snoke's pull on his hand. Poe launched a bomb from the Falcon and shook the Dreadnought. As soon as Snoke's focus was lost, Ben launched the explosive and destroyed the ship. As they returned to the surface, they scanned escape pods returning to the surface.

Two fleets appeared on the sides of the planet and dropped six enlarged droid. AT-M6 were dropped as well, they harbored an array of weaponry that the "inquisitors vault" clones. They used large slugs and laser bolts, but the majority of the damage they dealt was through their colossal size. Despite the destruction, they weren't killing people. Instead they launched energy bubbles in various sections of the city and trapped them. Two of the them collected the bubbles into a large container and loaded them in the AT-M6's. The first order only had two main targets: The remains of Snoke's fleet, The new "Colossus" Droids, and Phasma, who landed on the east side of the planet and unleashed ground troopers. Phasma was also accompanied by ground troopers, who locked combat with the majority of Nar-Dazco's troops, and two armored Rancors. She sported a brand new body. Lobot's scans suggested that it was completely bio-mechanical, a remnant of older cyborg projects such as General Grevious.

Tac-Spec, led by Salporin overtook most of the basic troopers. He freed many civilians and redeemed a fair share of Nar-Dazco's ground troopers. He was proud to use Finn's Z-43, it worked near flawlessly. Phasma was far too fast to be combated by any of the Dazco gangers. She tore through enemies seamlessly, and had her eyes set on the temple. Cim and Finn noticed this and closed in with their troops. Tac-Spec troops held her back for a little while, but were eventually conquered by the Rancors' rampage. Cim focussed on maiming the beasts with her vehicles. Finn rushed to Phasma as she entered the temple with intentions of shutting down the shields. She used charges to set fire to the walls and entrances. Phasma had slayed the interior guards and twenty civilians with her laser-ax when Finn entered. Finn ignited his gyro-blade and charged the cyborg, Phasma didn't glare as she did. She robotically moved to him and they traded blows. Her ax was heavy enough that Finn matched her speed. Her face had no emotion and Finn began to sweat, his dodges were barely enough to successfully evade her. She moved to his backside and swiped quickly. Finn swung his sword over his shoulder, blocking the move. She moved like a spider, her leg joints moving in both directions to conjure unnatural speed. Phasma forced Finn into an open space. While executing a back strike with her ax, she pulled Zorgoth's collapsible spear from her side and threw it at a chandelier. The structure tumbled towards Finn. He looked up and rolled to safety. He looked for Phasma, but she seemed gone. He heard clicks, but too late, she was behind him and swung low. His legs separated just below the knee, and he fell back. She reeled back, finally bearing a painfully wide grin. Suddenly, her ax pulled to her right. It left her hands and was claimed by the fury filled Zabrakian child. The ax was twice his size, but Gona stood among the bodies of the civilians nonetheless, you could tell he had been crying.

"Fight me you monster!"

Phasma's grin faded into her expressionless focussed mode. She picked up Finn's gyro-blade, and began to charge the child. Gona ran as well, holding the ax over his head. Finn fought through the pain and pulled his pistol from his side. He aimed at the cyborg, but didn't trust his hands. Gona fought well, but was completely inexperienced. Phasma disarmed him and prepared to strike. Gona wasn't thinking fast enough to create a force burst and sunk down. Finn conjured the last of his mind and shot. The bolts flew through phasma's head and the cyborg collapsed to the floor. Gona ran to Finn.

"You're hurt."

"You think?" Finn said in anger. He looked at Gona and calmed himself, "sorry. This does actually hurt."

Gona placed his hand on Finn's forehead and the pain left in moments. "Thanks for the save, I didn't realize she was that fast."

"She's normally not," Finn said balancing on his knees. He shot her a few more times, to ensure she was dead. Gona looked at him weird, he would never understand Finn's relief at the mangled corpse.

"At least it's over."

"Not by a longshot," Finn pointed to the opening. The Colossus Droids rummaged through the city. "One down, six to go."

Rey and Chewie flew Y-wings with a main squadron. They attempted to rope the Colossus Droids, but were unsuccessful. They managed to disable one, through sheer force. Their efforts seemed useless. Poe and Ben rejoined the group and they packed enough power to disable another droid. Poe flew low to the battlefield, The Falcon's hatch opened and Ben fell into the fray. He unleashed his sabers and rejoined with Salporin. The Boy fought alongside the Wookie with fury, the two were close to unstoppable. A large droid came close and threw them back with a stomp.

Sal picked himself off the ground, "get me up there Jedi." Ben obliged and with a harsh motion Salporin was on the side of the Colossus. Sal ignited two daggers and ripped through the center of the droid. He noticed a large battery. He tore it from the wires and amidst the fighters, Ben recognized the cell. He yelled to Sal who threw it to him. Ben caught it with the force and launched it towards another droid. He pulled a pistol from the ground and zapped the battery. The explosion shocked the troopers around Ben back, but he stood firm.

Ben spoke through the comm on his ear, " two down. Four to go."

Rey also joined the battle, but the amount of dynamos on the field was too few. The droids regrouped and gained new weapons. The airspace above the planet became clustered as a new fleet entered the sky. No one recognized them, but small pods entered the atmosphere and landed. The Black Knights joined on the field. Ben saw a few run towards him, he raised his blades in defense.

On Knight stopped at his feet, "The Black Knights have deemed this battle worthy. What will do with our services."

Ben made a confused face, "we need those droids destroyed. The citizens need protecting."

They almost didn't let him finish, they ignited their white lightsabers and swung into battle. Ben didn't know what to think, but they were effective. Sal, Ben, and Rey stood speechless as the battle was won easily. Ben almost smirked, but felt a presence from the temple. Rey soon recognized it as Snoke and the three used a speeder to rush over. From the ground they could see him on the roof. Rey used the force to see farther, she saw Finn at the mercy of a red blade. She slammed on the accelerator and Ben put a hand on her shoulder. Ben felt that Gona was unconscious in the temple, it relieved him but filled him with rage. They reached the temple and Salporin protected the people inside. They launched themselves up the side of the temple side, they reached his level and looked at the masked figure. Finn layed on the ground, Snoke's lightsaber at his chin. As soon as Rey met his eyes she ignited her staff. Snoke removed his mask and Han's face grinned, Ben compared it to the smile he made when creating his saber. Ben took out his two sabers, he gripped Luke's in his right.

"What's your play Snoke?" Ben yelled.

"Foolish child, you think death can hold me? You and I are connected now, Kylo Ren. You feel it don't you?"

Ben winced, he did feel the connection. The connection he once had with Han. Rey noticed Ben begin to shake, he leaned forward in his boots then raised his saber. "Ben no!" He rushed and Snoke's grin widened. Snoke rushed to the challenge, he fired his purified lightning. Be blocked the bolts with his saber, a few sparks burned his hand. He rushed further and attempted to stop Snoke by throwing off his balance. He anticipated Snoke's step and threw a burst at the ground. Snoke twisted around the spot and lunged with his blade, digging into Ben's shoulder. Rey joined in and shoved Snoke back. Snoke evaded every attack Rey's blade made, and Ben removed the saber from his shoulder. He realized that Snoke had a killshot and didn't take it for some reason. He felt the intentions shift and Snoke couldn't seem to kill Ben. Ben began to join the battle, but had an idea. He looked at the legless Finn and formed a plan. Rey traded blows and deflected lightning. Ben tossed his personal lightsaber to Finn's side and gave him a look. Finn understood and held the hilt close to his chest. Ben ran to Rey's aid, he jumped over her and kicked Snoke back a few feet. He traded blows with his opposite in a style close to Luke's when he fought Darth Vader. He could see that Snoke was reveling in the traditional act of Jedi vs. Sith. Ben began to throw roof rumble at Snoke, who evaded easily. In the barrage, Ben pulled Rey's staff to his aid and lunged. He maneuvered perfectly, taking Snokes saber and severing his hands. Han's face was filled with the familiar shock. As soon as Ben's blades hit Snoke's wrists he felt the pain on his own. Ben realized the next part even harder. He closed the green weapons and pushed Snoke back to Finn. Finn saw the figure coming and ignited Ben's red saber, plunging it into Han's back. Ben felt his own heart stop for a moment, he fell to his knees, overcome with pain. Han's body laid lifeless. Rey began to help Ben up, but felt a presence lingering in the air. She caught a glimpse of Snoke's fractured corpse moving to Ben's body. She didn't know what to do, so she raised her arm and attempted contact.

It spoke to her, "Foolish girl. He is mine." She thought of the creatures on Jurio and felt that power with Snoke. She pointed her hand in the space and Snoke stopped moving. "What is this?" She held him in place, not knowing how to banish him. Suddenly a figure moved to her side, it was Luke's spirit. And to the other, Obi-Wan. They too raised their hands and Snoke's ghost fractured further until the shape was completely gone. Luke smiled at Rey. Obi-Wan moved to Ben and touched his shoulder. Ben suddenly felt whole again and the pain subsided. Ben stood and greeted Rey. After they calmed, Rey went to Finn's side.

"Your legs!"

"It's not so bad anymore, besides, we got Phasma."

"Sorry I couldn't kill her the first time."

"At least it's over, right?"

Rey looked up at the sky and felt a sense of peace in the galaxy, "I think we'll be fine." She leaned over and kissed him. Finn was completely shocked, but didn't question.

Ben dropped to the bottom floor and met with Gona. Gona felt that he had failed but Ben assured the child of his nobility. Cim met up with Ben and the too celebrated the victory. The temple was fairly ruined by the battle, but the Grissmath hq was not. They reconveined and took a well deserved rest. The fate of the galaxy was not yet saved, but the peril was minimal. It was time to continue living. This battle ushered the age of preservation.

* * *

A/N This is the conclusion. From here it is up to you, I already established them as a protection agency (I.E. better guardians of the galaxy). If I wrote another chapter it would probably be cute romance, family bonding, and friends hanging out; and who comes to read star wars for that. My next project is a Marauder Era story.


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